A Day In The Life of
by kjt1
Summary: As the title suggests - various events from various POV's - with some JD thrown in. (Complete)
1. Margaret

Title: A Day In The Life of… Senior Assistant to the White House Chief of Staff

Disclaimer: _So_ not mine ::sigh::

Spoilers: Through Season 4

Feedback: Sure, send it my way :-)

Thanks: Huge thanks to Sharon for the quick readthrough and useful suggestions for this - it's much appreciated.

Notes: This is the first part of a planned series. The idea jumped into my head while I was at work… yes, I had a very productive day. g Anyway, the premise is I'll take a few of our 'favorite friends' and write from their point of view; they will bring us up to speed on the latest events in the West Wing and, of course, there will be some J/D thrown in along the way, just for good measure. :-) There will be 8 parts to the series in total, but I'm not gonna reveal all the characters just yet.

**

Why did Mallory have to choose tonight of all nights to cancel dinner with her father? Oh, I know it's not really her fault; she can't help it if she has to have a late meeting with the parents of one of her kids, it's one of the perils of being a teacher. However, that doesn't help me – I was really looking forward to having a long, relaxing bath tonight, but instead, I'm stuck in the office. Why can't I go home? Well, Leo is still here and, as I've said many a time, I go home when he goes home. It's not that I _have_ to stay here, it's that I choose to. I guess it's a little odd; I mean, most of the assistants work long hours, but it's only really Donna and myself that nearly always stay until our bosses leave. Actually, that's not strictly true – I _choose_ to stay, whereas Donna is more forced into it because Josh won't let her leave. To be honest though, even if he did let her go home, she wouldn't go anyway, not unless he was leaving too.

I know you're probably wondering why we choose to stay late; well, I think I can safely speak for Donna and myself when I answer that – in a way, we share a kind of bond about this. You see, the American people rely on the President to run the Country efficiently, and the President relies on Leo for help, therefore, if I don't ensure that Leo eats healthily and gets enough sleep, the American people could suffer; in other words, the American people also rely on me. Where does Donna fit into this? Well, Leo and Josh are in positions where 'the buck stops with them'; if something goes wrong, they will be the people to take ultimate responsibility to protect the President. Actually, it's Leo who has the ultimate responsibility, but I think we all know that Josh will always do whatever he can to protect Leo. This means that both Leo and Josh need to be fit and healthy, so that they can function properly. This isn't an easy task, given Leo's age and Josh's medical history. Don't get me wrong, Leo's not old, but he's not as young as he used to be either, and he refuses to eat the five portions of fruit and vegetables a day that he is supposed to eat to prevent health problems. As for Josh, well, Donna has constant arguments with him about his diet; he gets very childish if she tries to order him anything other than fries and a burnt burger. We compare notes on this topic frequently.

The bond I have with Donna extends beyond our working hours and our bosses' diets – we are able to discuss things with each other that we can't discuss with any of the other assistants. Obviously, we can't talk about everything, but I can certainly share more with Donna than I can with, say, Bonnie or Ginger, and Donna can do the same. We don't do this that often though, as we prefer to spend time as a group, i.e. with Bonnie, Ginger and Carol, so that we can regale each other with tales of our bosses. For instance, take this lunchtime…

The five of us were sitting in the mess, having managed to get some time free for lunch at the same time of day – this doesn't happen that often. I was _very_ glad to get away though, as today has been one of those days. Leo has had an endless stream of meetings, both with Senior Staff and in the Situation Room. These things get him into a bad mood and they make him tired, all of which adds to my workload. I'm not complaining - I love my job - it's just that sometimes I wish I wasn't here; I wish I was on a beach somewhere, getting a suntan. Of course, if Leo would actually let me go on the trips to California or somewhere sunny once in a while, hell _any_ trip for that matter, things would be much better. Sometimes I think he gets a perverse pleasure out of telling me that we can't go.

Anyway, back to today's lunchtime events. Bonnie and Ginger kept chuckling every time Donna or myself mentioned the White House function that is happening next week. I demanded to know what was so funny, thinking that they knew something I didn't. After a lot more laughter, they finally informed us that Toby had been in a bad mood all morning. I know that in itself won't surprise you, but wait until you find out the reason – he was complaining about the fact that Will had written the President's speech for the function and he, Toby, did not have to change more than two words; it was practically perfect. Toby had even rushed a copy to the President himself, in the hopes that he would find a problem with it, but he too was more than happy with it and didn't want to change a thing. All morning, Toby had been suffering from an extremely pleased with himself Will, and numerous comments from Bonnie, Ginger and the President about the fact that Toby could retire, now that they had someone who could more than fill his shoes. I know this maybe sounds derogatory towards our previous Deputy Communications Director, Sam Seaborn, but it's really not; it wasn't so much _what_ Sam wrote that Toby constantly complained about, it was the way in which he wrote…his legendary 'imagery'yyy. Toby doesn't write that way, and it really annoys him when other people can. Suffice to say, Toby would never say that Will is a better writer than Sam, just as he would never say that Sam was better than Will, it's just that Will has done the unthinkable; he's produced something that Toby cannot fault!

So, as I said, us Senior Assistants keep ourselves entertained by trading stories about our bosses. Today it was the turn of Bonnie and Ginger to discuss Toby, but last time it was Carol who kept us amused, telling us the latest in the CJ/Danny saga.

CJ had returned from a meeting to find Danny waiting in her office. She immediately complained to Carol, who informed her that Danny was receiving his 'visitation rights' with Gail and that CJ should consider herself lucky that Carol stopped Danny removing Gail from the office altogether, as was his original plan. Carol told us that CJ blustered about this for a few moments and then finally calmed down, probably plotting ways to get revenge on a certain reporter. Apparently though, her revenge efforts didn't work, not unless they included eating a late dinner with him in her office – Donna spotted them as she dropped some papers off on Carol's desk that night. Carol quizzed CJ about it the following day, asking in an underhand manner what she had been doing the previous night; CJ had merely said she worked late. Now, that may be true, but from what Donna says she saw, I think it's more likely that CJ's resolve is softening towards Danny and she doesn't want to admit it.

You know, the potential romance between CJ and Danny isn't the _only_ potential romance I have noticed in the West Wing lately. I noticed that… No, wait, I'll come back to this. I think I should first inform you of the delights myself and the other Senior Assistants have in store for Will Bailey – if the new Deputy Communications Director thinks his hazing is over, he's wrong; the Senior Staff may be finished with him, but their Assistants are not.

I'll give credit where it's due; it was Donna that came up with the plan. Josh had been complaining that Will had been let off too easily, that he hadn't been humiliated enough - apparently Josh doesn't consider having a goat in your office all that humiliating. I'm not even gonna wonder about what he _does_ consider humiliating, although, Donna did once suggest I ask Josh about his new shoes; I have no idea what that was about though - I often think it's safer not to get involved in the things between those two.

While I remember, I should probably tell you about the last thing that I told the other Assistants, when it was my turn for the 'boss story'. It was something that happened a couple of weeks ago, something Leo has being trying very hard to forget, but is being constantly reminded about by a certain President.

For the last few months, I have resorted to making Leo take vitamins every day. He protests continuously, but he always gives in, knowing he'll have an easier life that way; after all, would _you_ want to go against my good advice? Anyway, this particular day I hadn't had a chance to give him the vitamins, due to more endless meetings. I knew Leo was feeling very pleased with himself about that fact; I knew that because Mallory called me and told me he was gloating about it - she asked me to make sure he took them. So, to get my revenge, and to make sure he would take them without complaint in future, I waited until he was having his usual late-night meeting with the President. You know the one…where the President wanders into Leo's office from his own, just to find out the catastrophes that happened during the day which Leo had decided to keep from him until they were solved. I of course _knew_ that the President was there - that's why I have a spy hole in the door between my office and Leo's - but I feigned ignorance when I interrupted them.

As soon as I walked in, they both raised their eyebrows in surprise. I apologized profusely and explained that I had thought Leo was on his own. The President dismissed my worry, as I knew he would, and asked me what I needed. I very casually explained that I wanted to give Leo his vitamins. This amused the President greatly, and he spent the next ten minutes quizzing me on why I thought Leo needed vitamins in the first place, and then why I felt the need to keep them in the office, rather than letting him take them at home. I was prepared for this and told the President that I didn't trust Leo enough to take them without supervision. Unsurprisingly, this prompted laughter from the President and an eye-roll from Leo. My work was done - I knew the President would subject Leo to numerous comments about the fact that his assistant was looking after him so well and would insist on asking him every day whether he'd taken the vitamins or not.

I just remembered that I was talking earlier about another potential budding romance within the White House. Believe it or not, it's Josh and Donna. No, they aren't actually dating, but there's been a change between them lately, nothing over the top, but there's something. I sensed a change around about Christmas time, but I couldn't quite put my finger on it. However, Donna and Jack then split up, or rather they were forced apart, and I then found out about what happened the night of the Inauguration. Yes, I know about the 'snowball incident'. I bet you're wondering how I know about it, given that I wasn't there. Did Donna tell me? No, she didn't and, to be honest, I'm not quite sure what to make of that fact; I thought she would have told me, but…I'm digressing again. I actually found out from Will, well, not Will exactly; Ginger imparted the information, but she had received it straight from Will. Apparently, he was rather happy about the fact that the 'boys' had included him in their little excursion to Donna's apartment and he was boasting about it to Ginger. For some strange reason, he thought them inviting him signaled the end of the hazing, but he forgot about CJ!

Anyway, after Ginger told me about the snowballs and Josh persuading Donna to go to the balls with him, the pieces of the puzzle began to fall into place. I think Josh has finally realized how much Donna means to him. At first, I wondered why he hadn't acted on it; I wondered if he was maybe giving Donna some time to get over Jack, but then I remembered that this is Josh and, if he wants something, he usually just goes after it, no matter what. So, now I'm asking myself why he _still_ hasn't done anything; I mean, Donna is well and truly over Jack now, not that I think she was ever really that invested in their relationship in the first place. What conclusion have I come to about Josh's non-action? Well, I think he's scared. I think he's unsure of Donna's feelings and he's worried about damaging their friendship. It's been bothering me for a few days - should I have a quiet word with Donna to find out her feelings, or should I stay out of it? More to the point, if my perception about Josh's feelings is correct, how will Leo react? Will he be happy about their potential personal relationship and the impact it could have on their working relationship, or will he try and stop it before it starts? No, now that I think about it, I don't think Leo would do that; Josh means too much to him, he wants to see him happy. I wonder if Leo has realized that Josh has 'woken up'.

Oh, Leo has just called me into his office; I'd better stop my daydreaming. 

*

Well, I've finished typing up the notes Leo wanted, so I'll just take them back into him. We were talking earlier and I just happened to mention that Josh seems to be letting Donna leave earlier at nights now…he's going home early himself, and it looks as though he's actually getting some sleep. I noticed a small smile on Leo's face when I said that, as if he knows something that I don't. You know, I don't normally beat around the bush, so why should this be any different? I'll just ask him.

"Leo, here are the notes, all typed up. Let me know if you want to make any changes."

"Thanks."

He's giving me a dismissive look, but I'm not ready to leave just yet. How can I phrase this, how can I ask the question?

"Margaret, is there something else?"

His tone isn't showing any annoyance. In fact, given the day he's had, and the fact that Mallory cancelled dinner, he's in a surprisingly good mood. Now's my chance, I think.

"Leo, about Josh and Donna…have you..."

"Have I what?"

"Well, what I mean to say is, have you-- I mean, don't you think--"

"Margaret?"

I'm stumbling through my words I'm talking so fast. "Have you noticed a change in their behavior recently?"

He looks at me for a moment before dismissively saying, "Don't worry about it. I know."

What? What does that mean? He's smiling though, what does he know?

"It's in hand, Josh doesn't need any help; he has a plan."

A plan? "A plan? What sort of plan?"

"He has a plan. Do you really need to know the details?"

"Well, considering how good Josh is at planning things, I think it might be a good idea to warn Donna."

"You're not going to talk to anyone about this, including Donna."

I nod. "So, this plan..."

"It's one that involves him talking to Donna when the time is right, so just keep quiet for now, alright. I promise, as soon as I know it's happened, I'll let you know, if Donna doesn't tell you first."

Okay, what on earth…? I need to get him to expand on that, just to make sure we're on the same page. It's not like Leo to make comments like that. Oh wait, he's just put his coat on; it looks like I might get that bath after all. Time to go home.

**  
  
The End… for now.

The next part will be 'A Day In The Life of… White House Deputy Communications Director'. You wanna know what the Assistants are gonna do to him, right? g


	2. Will

Title: A Day In The Life of… White House Deputy Communications Director

Disclaimer: *So* not mine ::sigh::

Rating: PG-13

Spoilers: Through Season 4

Feedback: Sure, send it my way :-)

Thanks: Huge thank to Sharon for the beta.

Part 2/8

**

Sometimes I love working in the White House, and the people I work with, but other times…not so much. Take today for example; I discovered that even the Senior Assistants have an evil streak. Oh, I don't mean *evil* evil, I mean… You know, it's probably better if I explain what happened…

Four days ago, on Monday, I bumped into Donna in the Mess, late in the evening. I joined her for a quick snack and we got talking; just small talk, like you do over food. Anyway, the conversation turned to how I was settling into my job and I asked Donna if she missed Sam, as I know many of the others do, especially Toby, although he'd never admit that. She told me that it was certainly strange not having him around, but that everyone was adjusting, although all the Assistants were feeling it this week. I asked what she meant by that and was informed of something I never knew about - the Senior Staff/Senior Assistants monthly dinner.

You're wondering what exactly the Senior Staff/Senior Assistants monthly dinner is, aren't you? Well, I wondered that too, so I asked Donna. She said that, once a month, all the Senior Assistants (i.e. Donna, Carol, Bonnie, Ginger and Margaret) are taken out to dinner by one member of the Senior Staff (i.e. Josh, Toby, CJ or Leo). Up until he left, Sam participated in this as well. It apparently gives the assistants a chance to get to know the Senior Staff members who aren't their bosses a bit better than they do in the office. This week was supposed to be Sam's turn to take them out and next month it's CJ's turn.

Now, I know what you're thinking; you're thinking that you've never heard this mentioned before and it sounds dubious. I gotta admit, I did wonder about it myself. I decided not to ask Donna if she was messing with me, as if I was wrong, I would appear incredibly rude. Instead, I decided to do a little fact-finding. Things got pretty busy though and it was the following evening before I even remembered about it; I was reminded when I overheard Bonnie and Ginger talking.

Now, before you start calling me names or anything, I wasn't eavesdropping. I was simply sitting in my office, working, when I heard Bonnie and Ginger out in the bullpen. It was pretty late and they were the only people still out there. Anyway, I heard Ginger ask Bonnie what she was planning on wearing and at first I though Bonnie had a date. Then I heard them both say that, no matter what either of them wore, CJ would still look better. This intrigued me until I remembered Donna telling me the previous evening that CJ was the next organizer of the Senior Staff/Senior Assistants dinner. I was still a little dubious but, glancing at my calendar, I noticed that we were nearly at the end of the month and the following week - the week they were talking about - would in fact be part of *next* month; they had to be talking about the dinner, right? Yeah, that's what I thought.

I was a little disheartened to think that none of them asked me to participate in the dinner, but then I realized that they probably didn't want to force me into anything. Being the charming man that I am - and I have been told that a few times over the years, so I'm not being vain or anything - I decided that I should do the 'decent' thing and volunteer to take over Sam's traditional spot; after all, I've taken over his job already. The thing is though, I don't want to come across as trying to take Sam's place, I'm not trying to do that. I just want to find my own place within the Administration, but also fulfil Sam's duties; I'd say taking the Senior Assistants out to dinner constitutes a 'duty'.

Anyway, the following day I sent an e-mail to Bonnie, Ginger, Donna, Carol and Margaret inviting them all to have dinner with me, at a time suitable for themselves. I said that, to keep with tradition, it should be this week, but I understood if it was too short notice for them. I immediately received grateful replies from them all, and the general consensus was that either the Thursday or Friday nights would be suitable. We settled on Friday and I booked a nice restaurant for the six of us.

This all brings me to today, Friday. The restaurant was booked for 7pm, so why am I now sitting in my office at 7:05pm? Well, that's where the 'evil streak' I mentioned earlier comes in. I found out this afternoon that the whole thing was a prank, but I didn't find out in a nice, self-respecting, dignity-in-tact manner, oh no, I found out in full view of the entire Senior Staff, and the President!

We were in the Oval Office for the Senior Staff meeting and this is exactly how it happened…

*

"Alright, since it seems to be a light day today, how about we have a poker evening tonight?" the President asks.

Okay, everyone seems pretty happy about that and I'm game - I can, after all, hold my own at poker. Although…

"Um, Debbie's not going to be playing again, is she, Sir?" I bravely query.

The President is shooting me a grin, but he's shaking his head. Phew, I guess that means she's not playing and my money might just be safe.

"No, Will, it will just be those of us who are currently in the Oval Office."

Okay, that's good, I can handle that. I nod my head and everyone follows suit - guess we're all spending Friday night playing poker. Wait, this is Friday? Oh…

"Uh, Sir, sorry, but I can't make it," I say pretty quietly.

All eyes turn to me. "You can't make it?" the President asks with raised eyebrows.

"No."

"Something better to do?"

Uh oh, he's trying to bait me.

"Not exactly, Sir, but it's something I can't cancel."

"Is it a date?" Okay, I can see the mischievous twinkle in his eye; this isn't going to end well.

"No, Sir."

"Well, if it's not a date, I'm sure you can cancel. Come on, Will, let me take your money."

Yeah, like he's gonna beat *me*. Wait, why is he looking at me like that? Did I just say that out loud?

"What do you have planned, Will?" he demands to know, and I sense he's not going to let me go until I reveal all.

"Um, it's my turn for the Senior Staff/Senior Assistants dinner," I explain.

"The what?" everyone asks.

Why are they all looking puzzled? They all know about this, well, maybe the President doesn't, but the rest of them do.

"You know, where one of the Senior Staff takes all the Senior Assistants out to dinner once a month. This month should have been Sam's turn, so I thought I should step in."

Why are those looks passing between them all? Wait, why are they all laughing?

"The Senior Staff/Senior Assistants dinner?" Josh asks. I nod. "I hate to burst your bubble there, Will, but there's no such thing."

WHAT? "What? I mean, excuse me? What do you mean?"

"I mean that I've worked here for four years and I've never taken all the Senior Assistants out to dinner, at least, not on my own."

He hasn't? "But, Donna…"

Okay, *that* got Josh's full attention and stopped him laughing at me.

"Donna what?" he demands.

"Donna was the one who told me about it. She said it was a regular event; you know, each of you take turns every month to take them out, so that the sssistants can get to know us all better."

Toby's giving me a strange look.

"You really thought *I* would participate in this…thing?" he questions.

Ah hell, why didn't I think about that?!!! No wonder Josh is grinning widely, he's realized just how convincing Donna was in executing the plan; actually, he's looking kinda proud. Wait a minute, did --

"Josh, you didn't have anything to do with this, did you?" CJ just took the words right out of my mouth.

"No, CJ, I didn't. Donna and the assistants must have cooked this up by themselves."

"Well, in that case, I wouldn't be grinning so much," CJ tells him with a smirk.

"Huh?"

"Think about it, Josh," CJ continues. "If Donna pulled this off so easily, just think what she could do to you."  
  
"I'm not that gullible," he retorts. Hey now, wait a minute.

"Does that mean you think *I'm* gullible?" I demand to know.

"Well, you did fall for one of Donna's pranks so, if the cap fits…"

"And you've never fallen for one of Donna's pranks?" I sure hope this is Toby's way of jumping in to defend me. Josh just looks at him curiously. "I seem to remember a certain meeting you had with someone from the NSA just before we officially took office."

Josh looks puzzled. Oh, his eyes have narrowed now; I guess he's remembered something.

"Sam!" he guesses and Toby nods. I wonder what that is about, no-one looks to be about to clue me in though; I'll just have to ask Toby later, it'll take his mind away from laughing at me.

"Well, I guess we all need to be wary of the assistants, don't we?" the President laughs. "You were really going to take them all out for dinner?"

"Yes, I've even booked a restaurant," I say weakly, feeling myself flush with embarrassment.

"You were going to pay?"

"Yes," I confirm, briefly meeting his eyes before returning to my new favorite activity of inwardly kicking myself.

"Well, I think that's highly admirable."

Huh? I'm looking at him directly now and he's smiling at me, while everyone else is looking confused.

"When was the last time any of you had dinner with your assistants?" the President asks us all.

Everyone thinks for a moment and then Josh smugly replies, "I had dinner with Donna just last night, Sir."

"I meant *outside* of the office, Josh, not take-out at your desk while you worked."

Ha, that taught Josh; he's looking down at his shoes now and everyone is smirking.

"I don't know what the rest of you are grinning about, it's not as though any of you have a different answer," the President continues. "You know, the Senior Assistants do a sterling job around here and I don't think any of you appreciate that enough."

"Sir, --" Leo starts to interrupt, but is silenced by a look from the President.

"I think, since Will has a restaurant booked, you should all go out tonight, with your Assistants, and treat them to a well-deserved meal away from the office."

Everyone is groaning; they're all glaring at me as well. This can't be good.

"Sir, I thought you wanted to play poker," Leo points out.

"Yes, but I need to find a way of thanking the Assistants as well, so this can be it; I'm giving up a night of winning all your money at poker so that you can take them out to dinner instead."

"What about Debbie and Charlie though, Sir, shouldn't they get to participate in this?"

I think Josh regretted that statement as soon as he made it; I know he *definitely* did when he caught Toby's look.

"You're right, Josh, they should. Does that mean you're volunteering to pay for them, since I obviously can't attend tonight?"

I think the 'Oh, God' look on Josh's face says it all; he doesn't have to answer. 

"Don't worry, Josh," the President tells him, "I'm going to invite Charlie and Debbie to join me for dinner in the Residence tonight."

"I think they'd probably rather go with us, Sir."

Wow, Josh really *can't* control his mouth; I always thought the stories about him were exaggerated, but I guess not.

"I don't remember actually agreeing to any of this," Toby points out. The President is raising his eyebrows. "But, of course, I *do* agree; it's a wonderful idea, Sir," he deadpans.

Why do I have the feeling that Toby is going to blame me for all this? Hmm, maybe because he's glaring at me and mouthing the words, "This is your fault."

*

It wasn't long until the President finally let us leave the Oval Office and I was literally dragged by the arm towards my own office, where I was cornered by CJ, Toby and Josh; I guess Leo decided they could deal with me on their own.

"You're an idiot!"

"Gee, thanks, CJ."

"Oh, come on, Will, how the hell did you fall for something like that?" Toby demands. I'm hoping that the amusement I can make out in his tone is a good thing, although it's almost imperceptible amongst the gruffness.

"Hey, apparently I'm not the only one who's fallen for one of Donna's pranks."

Yeah, I know that was a lame attempt, but at least it's got CJ and Toby glaring at Josh and not me, for the moment.

"That's a good point, but we'll come back to Josh's idiocy later," CJ states.

"Hey!"

Josh is trying to look indignant, but it's not working very well.

"However, in the meantime, I want to know how you could fall for something so…" CJ stops and ponders for a moment; guess she's trying to find the word.

"Completely stupid," Toby supplies.

Thanks for the help there, boss.

"Thanks." Uh oh, she's looking at me again. "Well?"

She doesn't really expect me to answer that, does she? Okay, I'm guessing her pointed look means that she does. I wonder if I'd get away with dragging her into this? What do I have to lose?

"I believed it for two reasons," I start. They're all waiting patiently for me to explain; well, okay, not *patiently* - CJ's eyebrows are meeting her hairline, Josh is tapping his right foot and waving his arms to signal me to hurry up and Toby is…well, Toby's picked up a draft of the speech on my desk and has taken a pen out of his pocket, a *red* pen. "Firstly, Donna was very convincing; how was I to know she could be so devious? I mean, she looks so innocent."

What the hell? CJ just snorted.

"Innocent?" she laughs. Josh is glaring at her; I should have guessed he'd jump to Donna's defense right away. "Will, she works for *Josh*; you don't think she's picked a thing or two up over the years on how to be Machiavellian?"

"Hey, I'm still in the room, you know!" Josh points out indignantly.

"Yeah, I know she will have, and that's why I wasn't sure about it, but there was further evidence."

"Like what?" CJ questions.

"You."

"Me?" She looks confused, but she's glaring at me anyway.

"Yeah, I heard Bonnie and Ginger talking about going out with you next week. They also said that Donna, Margaret and Carol were going. Donna told me that yours was the next turn for the Senior Staff/Senior Assistants dinner, so…"

"So, you put two and two together and came up with five?" Josh finishes for me.

"I guess," I shrug.

"And, you didn't think to check this information with me?" CJ asks.

"I did, kinda," I say feebly. She's looking at me questioningly again; I wish she'd stop doing that; she's a scary woman. "I dropped off a draft of a speech on your desk the day after and I heard you and Carol talking about going out with Donna, and everyone else next week. Are you denying you have something planned?"

Ha, the ball is back in her court now, and Toby is waiting for her to explain; he's actually stopped scoring things out on my speech. You know, I'm sure he's just being vicious with that to get revenge on me for writing a faultless speech recently - the President hasn't stopped reminding him about it.

"No, I'm not denying we have something planned," CJ replies. "However, it's merely a 'girls night out', certainly not me buying them all dinner."

"Oh, well, how was I supposed to know that?"

"Maybe by *asking*?" she tells me.

"And maybe by using that thing you call a *brain* to figure out that I wouldn't be involved in something like that," Toby states dryly.

*

So, that was pretty much how I ended up here, sitting in my office waiting for everyone to finish up for the night so we can go to dinner. I e-mailed the assistants and told them that I knew about the prank; I knew they'd received it when I heard the laughter coming from Bonnie and Ginger. Then, each of the Senior Staff invited their respective Senior Assistant out to dinner. It was kinda funny actually, I happened to overhear Josh asking Donna. You know, I'm probably giving the impression that I overhear a lot of things; I don't do it on purpose, I just happen to be in the right place at the right time. Anyway, I was outside Josh's office, reading a file I'd just been handed in the corridor, and I heard Josh ask Donna if she'd like to have dinner with him this evening. Her voice held a quality I'd never heard before as she accepted, and then it went back to normal when Josh explained that we would all be there. Actually, her voice didn't go back to normal, she sounded a little disheartened. She sounded even worse when Josh continued to tell her that the President pretty much ordered him to invite her. The look on her face when she left the office was not a happy one, and I'm sure I heard Josh bang something down on the desk; the red spot on his forehead when he emerged from his office a few moments later led me to believe that it had been his head.

Oh, I can hear commotion outside, I guess we're ready to go. Yep, Toby just threw one of those rubber balls against the window; it's time to go.

*

You know, I didn't think this dinner would prove to be as fun as it has been, especially considering the rest of the Senior Staff didn't really want to come in the first place. I don't really know what's happened to change their minds, or their moods, but I'm not complaining. Well, actually, I *do* know what's changed Josh's mind, or at least I *think* I do; I think it probably has to do with the fact that Donna is practically draped over him at the moment. No, not in *that* way but…well, maybe it's a *little* in that way. See, they've been sharing food - apparently they do that a lot - and Josh has the plate positioned in such a way that Donna has to reach past him to retrieve anything.

Josh and Donna, now there's a subject I could 'wax lyrical' about for hours. I noticed their closeness pretty much when I first met them, but I wasn't sure at first if it just came from working together for 18 hours a day. However, when I started on staff here, I realized that it's just Josh and Donna; no other boss and assistant are quite as close. Oh, everyone respects each other and are close, but not in the same way. There's something…well, *something* about Josh and Donna. I mean, take the night of the Inauguration, the thing with the snowballs. I can't think that Toby would ever do that for Bonnie or Ginger; in fact, I'm pretty sure he would have fired them for taking the blame for the quote. Josh though, he was devastated when Donna said it was her, and he was over the moon to find out that it wasn't. All the way over to her apartment, when we were in the cab, he kept going on about how mad he was, but there was a sparkle in his eyes as he spoke. I gotta say, the look on his face when Donna came down to the street in her ballgown - I thought his jaw was gonna hit the ground and be covered in snow! It's no wonder though, she's a beautiful woman - I made the mistake of saying that to him a couple of weeks ago; I won't be doing that again, he gave me on those 'back off, buster' looks.

Oops, I think CJ just said something to me and I completely missed it because I was caught up in my reverie.

"What was that, CJ?"

"I asked if you've thought up suitable revenge for the lovely assistants here."

"Oh, no, not yet, but I will," I vow. Donna's laughing at me, as is Leo; what does he know that I don't?

"Let me give you some advice, Will?" Leo says.

"Yes?" I'm not really sure where he's going to go with this.

"Don't exact revenge, it'll just escalate and you'll never win."

"Why not?" I'm confused here, I mean, does Leo think I can't be devious or something?

"Because, from what I gather, the main culprit behind this is Donna; she came up with the plan. If you go against Donna, Josh will get roped into it and you don't want that; believe me, they make a formidable team."

You know, it's really interesting to me how Leo and Toby are very protective of Donna and jump to her defense. I don't blame them, she's highly capable, but it's interesting that she gets a lot more leeway than I think the other assistants would. She also seems to be involved in a lot more things than the other assistants are, but I guess that comes from working for Josh.

Uh oh, Leo's words have caused Josh to start boasting about his *master prankster* skills and he's waving his arms around the table. Donna just grabbed his hand to stop him knocking over her wine glass. Well, there's something interesting - Donna pulled Josh's hand away from the table and placed it in his lap, but she didn't let go of his hand. In other words, they're holding hands; Donna's right hand is clasped in Josh's right hand and they're draped across Josh's lap - I know this because I'm sitting next to Donna. From the look that just passed between them as they released their hands, I don't think they realized what they were doing; I think it was an entirely unconscious act from both of them. I wonder if…nah, they can't be, they wouldn't be able to keep it quiet. I just glanced at Leo, who's sitting next to Josh, to see if he's noticed the scene that's playing out. He apparently has as he and Josh just shared a look; in fact, I'm pretty sure Leo just mouthed the words, "Slowly, Josh, remember your plan", but I've never been a great lip-reader, so I can't be sure.

You know what, I think I'm gonna stop thinking about all this and over-analyzing; I'm just gonna enjoy the meal and spend some time with my colleagues, no, my *friends*.

**

The End

Still to come, in Part 3, what's been happening in CJ's life lately?


	3. CJ

Title: A Day In The Life of… White House Press Secretary

Disclaimer: *So* not mine ::sigh::

Rating: PG-13

Spoilers: Through Season 4

Feedback: Sure, send it my way :-)

Thanks: As ever, to Sharon for all her help and suggestions.

Part 3/8

**

Urgh, I am gonna *kill* Carol, she's way too soft with Danny. That's the third time this week that she's let him into my office while I've been out. I've got back to find him sitting on my couch, waiting for me with this stupid grin on his face. I hope he hasn't been using his journalistic skills to get information from Carol about me.

What did he want this time? Well, the same as he always wants of course - me to go out to dinner with him. Actually, he wanted me to tell him that I'm madly in love with him, but he said he'd settle for dinner. I refused, as usual. Don't get me wrong, I like Danny and there was a time when… But, it can't happen; I can't go out with a reporter, it would be totally unprofessional and unethical. Plus, Leo would kill me.

I have to admit though, Danny and I had dinner in my office not that long ago. It wasn't my choice; I was pretty much forced into it. You see, Danny had turned up to claim his 'visitation rights' with Gail. Yeah, I know, I told him he was crazy as well, but it was kind of amusing. I pointed out, again, that he had given Gail to me as a *gift* and he therefore had no rights, but he wouldn't listen. When he kneeled down beside my desk and started talking to Gail, I couldn't help myself and I burst out laughing. I don't know if it was Danny talking to her, or my sudden outburst, but it startled Gail and she swam into the edge of the bowl. No, don't ask me how she managed to do that - I thought fish had a good sense about these things, but apparently not Gail. Of course, Danny blamed me and I blamed Danny and we both looked at Gail - she seemed okay, but she was swimming very slowly. I ordered Danny out of my office, but he said he had to stay to make sure Gail was okay; I refused and threw him out.

So, how did we end up eating dinner together? Well, Danny returned that evening with some Chinese take-out. He informed me that he was very worried about Gail and he needed to monitor her closely, in case she had concussion. I really couldn't believe my ears, as he actually seemed serious. Anyway, I decided I wasn't going to give up the opportunity of free food, so I deigned to let him stay. It wasn't long before we were laughing heartily and I had actually forgotten my annoyance at him taking over my office. In fact, we were soon teaming up together against Josh.

Joshua Lyman, for a reason best known to himself, thought it was wise to enter my office that night. Now, normally, that wouldn't be a problem; in fact, I would have been grateful for the additional company when Danny was around. However, this particular night, Josh was eating his own take-out when he came into my office. No big deal, you say? Well, the take-out was sushi. Yes, pieces of fish. He was eating fish in front of Gail! Danny was the first to realize what he was eating and, when Josh confirmed it, we ganged up to yell at him. Josh had the gall to look at us like we were crazy. He even said that Gail wouldn't have a clue what was going on; I was so proud of Danny when he grabbed Josh's arm and dragged him out of the office, warning him not to insult Gail's intelligence again. To be honest, I know neither of us wanted rid of Josh for that reason, it was just a convenient excuse. The real reason was that we were enjoying ourselves, just the two of us. I can't believe I just admitted that, but it's true. That's why I'm in the predicament I'm in; Danny is getting under my skin again and I can't let that happen.

All this talk of dinner is making me think about the Senior Staff/Senior Assistants dinner we were forced into having last week. The assistants had played a prank on Will and, well, it kind of backfired - not for them, they still got a free meal out of it - but for the rest of us, as we got dragged along. Not that any of us were really complaining; it turned out to be a good night. We don't really get the chance to socialize that often outside the White House, certainly not all of us; usually it's just the Senior Staff, excluding Leo, but none of the assistants, well, except for Donna, but she's always been different. Okay, that probably sounds a bit derogatory towards the other assistants; it's not meant to be, it's just that…how can I explain this? You know what, I don't think I should start thinking about Josh and Donna - and there is a 'Josh and Donna', I just don't think they've both realized that yet, but Josh has, oh yes, I'm sure of that.

Anyway, the dinner we all had together turned out to be a great night, but Will seemed to think that it signaled the end of his hazing. He's probably right, I mean, I certainly don't have anything more planned for him in terms of *hazing*, but I will still play the occasional prank, as I do with everyone, just to make him feel part of the team.

You know, my relationship with Will is something I'd never have guessed about - oh, I don't mean we're having a *relationship*, I mean that we're friends, more than just colleagues; we seem to have formed a strong bond. Sam and I always got on well - who didn't get on with Sam? - but it was different. Obviously, I also have strong bonds with Toby and Josh, but they're very different from the bond I have with Will; I have a very different bond with Toby than the one I have with Josh as well. With Josh, he's more like a brother to me; that's the reason I bought him the pajamas when he got shot - it's something that sisters do. I need to act like the stern older sister when I'm around Josh, which is strange given the closeness in our ages. He just gets himself into so many…scrapes though; he's like a little kid. The thing is, he doesn't mean anyone any harm, he always does things with the best of intentions. Politically, he's a mastermind, a major player, but personally, he's like…a lost little boy with moments of brilliance, looking for direction to channel his energy. He needs someone to bring him back to reality every once in a while, when he goes off half-cocked to help out his friends.

My relationship with Toby is built around how well we know each other, and each other's limits. I admit, I flirt with Toby, but I never mean anything by it, and he knows that. He's one of my best friends and, when I need to let off a little steam, I go to Toby and try to freak him out by flirting - the look on his face is usually reward enough; if I get a smile it's like hitting the jackpot.

Will and I just seemed to hit it off. I didn't think we would at first, but I think I was impressed by his calm attitude to the whole goat-in-his-office thing. The real 'crunch-time' though was when we had the problems with the landing gear on Air Force One. I forced him into telling the Press Corps about it, and he handled it well…well, he handled it okay; he's obviously not a good liar, but I should really admire that, since he's been so successful in politics but isn't really able to lie. Anyway, he kept a cool head in an intense situation and that's what we need. When I'm around him I get to act like a kid again; I don't know why, but I do. Will seems to take it all in his stride, nothing really phases him. He's a smart guy and I respect him, and I'm very glad he's working with us. Well, he's smart apart from falling for pranks so easily.

As a result of the assistants playing the prank on Will so effortlessly, all the Senior Staff are now scared of what might be done to them. Well, that's not strictly true, I mean Leo isn't scared; they know he could fire them, so they won't risk anything. I'm not scared either, as I'm friends with them all and often give them some nice gossip that they wouldn't otherwise know about their bosses. Toby would never admit he's scared, but I know he's worried - he caught Bonnie and Ginger saying something about taking all the punctuation out of one of his speeches and blaming Will a couple of days ago and he's now examining everything extra-carefully before he releases it. Will and Josh though, they're pretty much terrified. Will doesn't know anyone well enough to figure out pranks as easily and Josh, well, he knows Donna can wrap him around her little finger whenever she wants - he'd never openly admit that, but we all know it's true.

I guess you still want to know what I'm going to do about Danny, don't you? Well, the answer is that I honestly have no idea; it's a complicated situation. Last time, a couple of years ago, Leo gave me a warning about getting too involved with Danny; he thought I was too friendly with the press in the first place and dating Danny…well, let's just say he would not have been happy and I might have been looking for another job. Oh, he didn't threaten me with unemployment, but I knew what my options were. At that time, I was a couple of years younger and still thought I had time to worry about who I would be settled down with in my old age. Now though, where am I? I'm still in the same place I was a couple of years ago - nowhere. I don't have a love life; I hardly even have time for 'dalliances'. Oh, sure, there was Marco when I went back home to visit Dad, but that wasn't exactly a night to remember, it was a night to forget - to forget about all the stress at home; both home in Ohio with Dad and home in D.C. where I think of Simon every time I walk towards my office in the morning, expecting to find him there.

Simon…I know I didn't know him that long, but there was something between us, definitely something. Where it might have led, well, I guess I'll never know. I do know though that I still think about him, a lot. Expecting to see him outside my office is evidence of that. Hell, he was only my Secret Service protection for a few weeks, but I got used to him, despite my constant grumbling about him. That will always be one of my biggest regrets - not being able to see where things might have gone between us, having that opportunity ripped away. I now know how Donna must have felt the night Josh was shot. I watched her closely that night. When Toby told her Josh had been hit, it was like her whole world fell apart. She tried to put on a brave face, but we knew, we all knew. If Josh hadn't pulled through, I don't think Donna could have coped. Oh sure, she would have *survived*, but she wouldn't be the Donna that we know; something would have died along with Josh, the spark would have left her. After that night, I couldn't understand why things didn't change between them. I thought they had at one time, they seemed closer, *much* closer, but it turned out that nothing had really changed. Then, Amy came on the scene, although I still think Josh dated her for a reason other than just that he liked her; I have this feeling that he was making some sort of point. I don't know why I think that, but I do.

Thinking of Rosslyn brings me back to my earlier thoughts, about the fact that Josh realizes his feelings towards Donna now. I don't think he did back then, I think his subconscious had masked them incredibly well. He knew she was special, and that his life was improved by having her in it, but I don't think he knew just how much he needs her; he does now though. I had my suspicions around Christmas time and I watched him closely to have them confirmed, but there was no firm evidence. My suspicions were pretty strong though - when Donna left to meet Jack in the hotel, Josh moped around the office for the rest of the night. He was working, making phone calls with Leo, but he looked pretty depressed. I couldn't even tempt him with the thought of putting snowmen in the Press Room, even though he'd been looking forward to it earlier. I knew the reason was because of Donna leaving, but he wouldn't admit it.

Then Danny told me about the night of the Inauguration and all the guys going to Donna's apartment. I remember the look on Josh's face when I first told him about the quote; he immediately jumped to Donna's defense but, when I told him she'd called me and confessed, he looked like his world had been torn apart. I know I jumped to the conclusion that it was Donna *way* too easily, and I haven't forgiven myself for that; I can't believe I thought the worst of my friend before I had any real evidence, before she called me.

Back to Josh though. When I heard that Donna had taken the blame for Jack, I wondered why Josh hadn't gotten madder. I mean, it meant that Donna cared enough about Jack to take the heat off him; I didn't think Josh would be happy to realize that. Then I figured it out. Josh knew that Donna did it because she's that sort of person, she'll sacrifice herself to save others. That's why she and Josh are so well suited; Josh will do anything for anyone if he can help - well, his friends anyway. Donna just wanted to buy enough time for Jack to get to his new assignment; she knew Josh would figure things out eventually. I have to say, she must have an awful lot of confidence in the relationship between herself and Josh to have taken that sort of risk. Any other boss might just have fired her on the spot for embarrassing the Administration like that and then, when the truth emerged later, it would have been too late; she couldn't have been rehired. However, she knew Josh wouldn't fire her, not without giving her a chance to fully explain when he had calmed down enough. I don't think Donna realizes the main reason *why* Josh won't fire her though. She doesn't know that it's only *partly* because he trusts her and needs her skills to help him do his job. She doesn't know that the other part is because he's in love with her and couldn't bear not having her in his life.

I've considered discussing this with Donna, but I haven't so far. I don't really know what's been stopping me, I want to help Josh and I don't think he'll make a move on his own. However, I just have this…feeling that something is in the 'works'; that he now has some sort of plan. That in itself should be enough to worry me - I know how Josh's plans usually turn out - but I'm gonna give him the benefit of the doubt, although, I am going to give him a bit of a helping hand. I'm going out this week with all the Senior Assistants; it's a 'girls night out'. We've been planning it for a few weeks and I'm looking forward to it. We're not doing much, just going for dinner and then to a bar, but it'll give me a chance to talk to Donna, find out how she feels about Josh these days. More to the point, I want to find out if she has any inkling about his realized feelings towards her. I don't think she has, but Donna can be pretty secretive when she wants to be; it's sometimes difficult to know what she's thinking.

Speaking of what people are thinking; how am I going to get Danny to stop 'putting the moves' on me? God, that sounds so dumb, but it's the truth; he's hitting on me, big time! At first, I thought I could handle it. I thought I'd just be myself and use my sense of humor to deflect his advances, but it's not working. Every time he says something to me, it hits home a little bit harder that I want what I can't have, and it's getting more difficult to ignore. I wish he'd just back off a little bit, just enough to let me know that he's still interested, but that he understands the problems and is willing to wait.

Oh, great, it's time for the next press briefing. As much as I hate having to impart bad news and Administration problems to the White House Press Corps, I almost hate the 'light days' more, because they give the Press Corps a chance to wind me up. You think I'm crazy, right? Well, let me tell you what's going to happen in this briefing - I'll get to end and open the floor to questions. I'll get one or two sensible questions and I'll answer them. Then, just as I'm trying to wrap up, Danny will stick his hand in the air. If I ignore him, one of the other reporters will point out that Danny has a question, meaning I'll have to call on him. He'll ask something dumb, something like, "When are you going to get a better couch in your office, CJ? I need something that won't hurt my back when I crash there." Of course, the Press Corps will laugh and will know that it's just Danny being Danny, but it will still tug at my heart; it will still make me think of him lying on my couch, waiting for me to get to my office and waken him.

Well, I guess I can't put this off any longer…time for the press briefing.

**  
  
The End

Still to come, in Part 4 - what thoughts occupy the mind of a White House Communications Director?


	4. Toby

Title:  A Day In The Life of… White House Communications Director

Disclaimer:  *So* not mine ::sigh::

Rating: PG-13

Spoilers:  Season 4, through 'Life On Mars' with some slight spoilers for 'Commencement'

Feedback:  Sure, send it my way :-)

Thanks:  To Sharon and Lisa for their help with this.          

Part 4/8

**

What is Will trying to do to me?  Why does he insist on arguing the point on everything we do?  He's wasting time writing speeches that are full of idealism, speeches that won't be taken seriously.  I give him a clear specification, boundaries and parameters within which to write, but he ignores them and writes according to what he *believes* in.  What gets to me though is that I want to be able to do that.  I want to be able to push the boat out once in a while and not consider the long-term ramifications for the Administration.  Will doesn't give up, I know that; he tried to elect a dead Congressman in the California 47th and, what's more, he did.

I wish I could do everything that I want to do, make the World a better place for my children.  I can't even get things right on my own doorstep though, so how can I really change anything?  I'm involved in key decisions every day; I help run a Superpower nation, but still…I can't even persuade the woman I love, the woman who is soon to give birth to my children, I can't even persuade her to marry me again.  My life has always revolved around my work; it's always been my first love, until now.  I realize what I lost when I lost Andrea and I want it back, I want a family.  My own family, the one in which I grew up, could be considered highly dysfunctional.  My father was a frequent murder witness, a member of Murder Inc., so dysfunctional is not nearly a strong enough word, but if I start with all the words I could use, I would never stop.

My children are not going to grow up in that sort of environment, I won't allow it.  I want them to *want* to know their father, not to try to hide the truth about him, cut him off for years like I did; that would kill me.  However, I'm not sure that I can make things any different.  Will they want to know me?  Will they be proud of me or will they, in later life, decide that I'm not a man they want to spend time with?  I feel as though I am already letting them down by not marrying their mother.

I have proposed in every way I can think of, within reason for a person in my position, but Andrea has refused every time.  At first, I thought she was being stubborn, that she was still looking for a fight and wasn't prepared to 'give in' and marry me to appear more respectable.  As time has progressed though, I am becoming less convinced that the reason lies in the world of politics and more convinced that it lies with me, that I'm not what she wants.

Discussion with Josh has led me to make a 'last ditch' attempt, a bold romantic gesture to prove to Andrea that I am serious and that I want to put her and the children first.  Josh thinks that she wants to be chased, that she wants to be made to feel attractive even though she's the size of a house.  House…it's strange I should compare her to that because that is going to be my gesture; I'm buying a house for us to live in, as a family.

I thought Josh was crazy at first and I seriously doubted my sanity for even discussing the issue with him; what does he know about getting women to marry you?  I questioned him about his own 'bold romantic gestures' and he just shrugged, but there was a wistful smile on his face.  I then remembered the night of the Inauguration and our visit to Donna's apartment building; it was Josh's attempt at romance, albeit without him actually admitting he was trying to 'win the girl'.

Oh, people think I don't notice these things, but I do.  Why do you think I went to Donna's apartment with him?  Of course, I wanted to make sure the 'rabble' weren't going to do anything stupid that could cause bad press, but mainly it was to give Josh some moral support.  I knew how devastated he was when he was told Donna was behind that quote.  Until CJ said Donna had called, Josh refused to believe it was her.  I actually didn't believe it myself, but Josh was adamant it wouldn't have been her.  When CJ gave him the final piece of information, that Donna had called to confess, he looked as though someone had ripped his heart out and used it as a baseball. 

I have known for a while that Josh has strong feelings for Donna; I probably knew before he did, or at least before he actually openly admitted them to himself.  My knowledge was the main reason I was surprised when he became 'ensorcelled' by Amy; how could he want to date her when Donna was right in front of him?

His relationship with Amy is something that I don't like thinking about, they were plainly wrong for each other.  Josh wore himself out trying to keep their relationship together and still focus on work; the usual 'bundles of energy' Josh would never have let Amy know about the Welfare Bill in time for her to try to sink it.  I know the President reamed him out for that and he deserved it to a certain extent; he will never make that mistake again.  From what I heard about the incident though, the President went too far.  He blamed Josh for things other than the Bill, things that were way beyond Josh's control, and other things that Leo had signed off on; the President was blowing off steam and Josh accepted it because he had no choice, he couldn't argue with the President.  However, he also accepted it because he blamed himself too.  He knew he had told Amy things he shouldn't have, that he had let himself be blindsided by her because he was trying to make their relationship into something it should be – open and honest where you don't have to keep secrets; he just didn't realize that he would never have that with Amy.

He's beginning to let his personal life get in the way of his job again, or rather his personal *feelings* since he hasn't actually acted on them yet.  He's not fully concentrating on his work because he's thinking about Donna, about how to tell her how he feels; I know he's finding it more difficult to hide his feelings and he wants to tell her in a certain way, not just let something slip during one of their normal, every day banter sessions.  Due to this, he's spending time thinking about how to keep his emotions under control and that's affecting his work.  It's not at a point where it has an adverse effect on the Administration, but it is heading that way and I can sense that I am soon going to have to intervene.

I really thought he would do something after Donna and Jack split up, or should I say 'Commander Wonderful' as Josh has taken to calling him.  When he was re-assigned, Donna was pissed, but she got over it fairly quickly.  It was Josh's reaction to her dating Jack that told me he knew his own feelings now; it was made abundantly clear the night the quote came out, when Josh, CJ and I were in a bar and Josh kept muttering that Donna was supposed to be joining us.  I told him to shut up and leave her in peace to spend her last night with Jack; Josh didn't take that too kindly.  All through Donna and Jack's relationship I found it amusing to ask Josh about them; it was an easy way to shut him up when he was annoying me.  That night in the bar though, I knew I couldn't do that any longer, I knew it was hurting Josh that Donna was upset about Jack leaving because it meant that Donna did actually care about the guy.

For her part, I don't think Donna cared for Jack as much as Josh thinks she did; I think she kept a part of herself back from him, the part she keeps for Josh.  Whether she's conscious of that fact or not, I'm not sure, but I know she loves Josh, she has for a long time.  I have been with Donna in some of the toughest times and she's always impressed me with her strength, her ability to sense what needs done and to just do it, no questions asked.  When I told her about Josh being shot, she was stunned into silence and I didn't think she'd cope, but she soon snapped back to 'normal' and started asking what need to be done around the office; she didn't want to let Josh down, or the Administration.  Once Josh was released from hospital, she implemented rules that restricted visitors, length of visits, etc.  It amazed me that she could hold her own with us, but she put up with Josh's constant complaints of boredom, so I suppose I shouldn't have been surprised that she could ignore us as well.

When I told Donna that the President had MS, she amazed me again.  She took it so calmly and merely asked if he was in any pain; I wished I had taken it so well.  Josh was not happy that I had pre-empted him by telling Donna myself, but I meant what I said to him; he hadn't told her and I didn't think he would, at least not the way he wanted to.  There was no way of sugar-coating it, of softening the blow, you just had to give the news and move on; Josh isn't able to do that where Donna is concerned.  He worries when he has to give her bad news, worries that she will be angry, hurt, upset or, worse, disappointed with him.  He wants to protect her whenever possible and he hates it when he can't; he feels he's letting her down in some way.  

Despite my hatred of it, I am sorely tempted to play matchmaker for Josh and Donna.  As I said, it's beginning to affect Josh's work and I can't allow that to happen.  I also don't like seeing them both trying to hide their feelings when there is no need.  Josh is going round playing cupid for everyone else – myself and Andrea, Charlie and Zoey and apparently he's been encouraging Sam to ask someone out as well – I would rather Josh concentrated on his own love life, or lack of one and leave the rest of us alone.

I suppose I'm something of a hypocrite by saying that, given that I actually asked Josh for advice; however, I am now at a stage where I can't do anything else.  If the house doesn't work, I have no back-up plan, it will be over; I can't bear to think of that though.  I'm scared of how I will adjust to having children, being a father, but I am even more scared of being a part-time father, not being around them every day to watch them grow up, relying on information from Andrea on when they take their first steps, when they grow their first tooth.    

Will is really annoying me now.  He keeps asking me if the President has asked for help writing his speech for Zoey's Commencement.  I tell him the same thing every time - no, he hasn't.  It doesn't stop Will going on about it though, oh no, he keeps harping; yet another thing he has in common with Sam.  I think he expects me to ask the President if he needs help; I'm not going to do that.  For one thing, I have enough work of my own to do without getting involved in that and, for another thing, I know that it's one speech that will never be 'nailed'.  No matter how good it is, the President will want to change it, right up until the last second.  Even if he says he's happy with it, he won't be and he'll get up on the dais and change something.  It infuriates me when he does that, so I'm not going near it.  If Will wants to brave that lion's den, he can, but I don't want to be involved.  For some reason, Will seems to think my annoyance stems from my problems with Andrea, rather than him.  He's about to find out that it's most definitely him.  Time to go and remind him about the fact that he fell for the assistant's prank.

**

The End

Next up… a certain member of the White House Press Corps ;-)


	5. Danny

Title:  A Day In The Life of… White House Reporter

Disclaimer:  *So* not mine ::sigh::

Rating: PG-13

Spoilers:  Season 4, through 'Life On Mars' with some slight spoilers for 'Commencement'

Feedback:  Sure, send it my way :-)

Thanks:  To Lisa for the beta

Part 5/8

**

Only ten minutes until I can go bug CJ again.  She told me to stay away from her for at least two hours if I valued my life; in ten minutes it will have been two hours and one minute since she said that.  I usually ignore her when she makes the 'go away' requests, but this time she really seemed serious and I decided that I should maybe give her time to cool off before being my sweet charming self and asking her out again.  Why did she need to cool off?  Well, it wasn't anything I said or did.  No, honestly, it wasn't.  CJ has been having to field a lot of questions about Hoynes' resignation and who the new VP candidate will be; she's not enjoying it.

To make matters worse, she knows that this morning's press briefing is going to be peppered with questions about why Josh, who is in charge of the selection process, went out and got drunk last night instead of concentrating on creating a candidate shortlist.

Sam was in town yesterday for a flying visit to meet with some of the DNC.  He didn't have time to drop by the White House as such, although I think it was more the case that he didn't want to risk being caught by the President and subjected to a three hour grilling on how things are going in California.  Anyway, since he couldn't come here, he called Josh and asked him to get some people together to go for a drink.  Josh being Josh, he forgot and only remembered when Sam called and asked where he was.  By this time it was nearly 11pm and most people had already left; Toby had gone to see Andi, Will was sleeping off a three-day run of speechwriting and CJ was having a well-deserved early night.  So, the only people left in the office were Josh and Donna.  They met up with Sam in the bar.  In slight defense of Josh, Sam was the one who chose the bipartisan bar.

I got a call from a source around midnight, telling me that Josh had left the bar in a drunken stupor, after yelling at Donna that he wasn't a child and was perfectly capable of looking after himself; he had then proceeded to fall off his stool.  A few of the Republican patrons had made some disparaging comments about Hoynes, and the Bartlet Administration in general, and Sam and Donna had been forced to drag Josh from the bar before he shot his mouth off.

Since they got him out in time, he didn't make any printworthy comments, but it is newsworthy that he is spending his time getting drunk instead of selecting VP candidates to help run the country.  As much as I like Josh, someone is going to write the story, so it might as well be me.

I know that Josh takes his work seriously, it's the most important thing in his life, and I know why he got drunk last night; he has not yet come to terms with the fact that Hoynes let him down or, as Josh no doubt sees it, that Josh let Hoynes down.  Josh knows that the Hoynes situation was totally out of his control; there was nothing he could have done.  However, knowing Josh as I do, I know he has a remarkable ability to find fault with himself in every situation; it's as if he thinks he should be superhuman and prevent people from making mistakes.

Josh found it difficult to leave the Hoynes campaign and start working for Governor Bartlet.  We knew each other well, even back then, and I was one of the first people he told after Hoynes.  He felt guilty for pulling out, as he knew that it meant Hoynes would lose and, for once, it wasn't just Josh's ego talking, it was the truth; without Josh, there was no way Hoynes would win.  He made the right decision though; he helped put the right man in office and I, as an American, am grateful for that.

Throughout the first Bartlet term, Josh had to overrule some of Hoynes' initiatives and I think he's now kicking himself for doing that; he's probably trying to tell himself that Hoynes felt forced out and needed to find support elsewhere, i.e. in the arms of a woman who wasn't his wife.  I know this sounds crazy, but I know Josh and I know he will have had these sort of thoughts flitting around his head lately, resulting in his need to get drunk last night.

What has convinced me even more that Josh *needed* to get drunk last night, that he actually made a conscious effort to do so, is the fact that when I saw CJ first thing this morning – to tell her I knew about Josh's activities last night – she said that Donna had called her last night, once she and Sam had taken Josh home.

Donna told CJ that she tried to dissuade Josh from getting drunk, but he ignored her attempts.  He actually managed to down a few whisky shots on his way to and from the bathroom; information which only came to light later, when Donna went to the bar to call a cab and got talking to the barman.  When Josh started ranting about some of the overheard Republican comments about Hoynes, Donna tried to diffuse the situation and change the subject, with Sam's help; however, Josh was in too much of a ranting mood and wouldn't listen.  This, I have to admit, surprised me greatly as, if anyone can get Josh to calm down, it's Donna.  The fact that she failed means that Josh was probably out of control and that's always worrying; I know about his PTSD.  He entrusted me with the information as a friend and I would never comment on it publicly.  Privately though, I know that Josh has nearly always had a 'worry complex', where he thinks that he's going to lose everyone and everything he cares about, and the PTSD on top of that is something he definitely did not need.

Donna is the other reason I think Josh knew exactly what he was doing by getting drunk last night; I think he's finally realized that he's in love with her and he's trying to figure out how to handle it.  The night of the Inauguration, when we went to Donna's apartment to persuade her to go to the balls with us, Josh seemed terrified that she wouldn't forgive him for being so angry with her, even though he had every right to be angry at the time.  The look on his face when Donna came down to the street in her ballgown is something I will never forget; Josh looked awestruck and, for one fleeting moment, he looked totally happy and at peace, something that I have never witnessed before.

Josh has never been good at making the first move with women; he is a brilliant political mind and the kind of friend who would bail you out of an Alaskan prison at 2am without a second thought but, if worrying was an Olympic sport, Josh would win the gold, silver and bronze medals.  He convinces himself that the women he likes are not going to be interested in him, even though he freely boasts about his fanclub and league of female admirers; when it comes to someone he really likes, however, someone he wants to be with, he is terrified of messing things up, of putting himself out there to be hurt and, more importantly, of being left behind when they leave.

I know things won't be like that between him and Donna, she'll never willingly leave him, but I don't think Josh is 100% sure of that yet; he's still 'testing the waters' to try and figure out her feelings for him before he reveals his own for her.  The fact that she not only didn't walk out when he got drunk and yelled last night, but that she actually helped Sam take him home and then called CJ to do early damage control, will hopefully go a long way to convincing Josh that Donna is around for the long haul.

Okay, the two hour ban is up, time to go see CJ again.

*

"Hey, CJ."

"What are you doing here?"

Her tone was a little harsh there.

"You said to stay away from you for two hours, I did and now I'm back."

I used all my charm there.

"Danny, I have actual work to do; go away."

"Oh, come on, CJ, take a break for a few minutes, talk to me."

"I have a briefing to prepare for."

I'm sensing I'm just gonna *really* piss her off if I stay, so better to leave while I'm still winning, or at least while she's still kinda talking to me.

"Okay, I'll go.  I'll see you after the briefing."

Hey, I'm sure I just heard her mutter, "Not if I see you first."  Yep, the little smirk on her face when I glared to show I heard her has confirmed my suspicion.  Hmm, I'll need to get her back for that later.

*

You know, CJ really is good at her job.  As expected, there was a question about Josh's little escapade last night.  CJ just laughed it off with a comment that Josh had been complaining about being neglected by the press since he hadn't made the front pages in a while and he wanted to rectify the situation.  She threw in another wry remark that his mother will now be happy, as she's been wondering what he looks like lately.  The jokes had the desired effect – nobody pressed any further, knowing there wouldn't any more information; Josh is still running the selection process for the new VP and he'll draw up the shortlist for the President's approval as soon as he can.

So, the briefing is over and it went pretty well.  Yes, you guessed it; it's time to go see CJ again.

*

"Hey, CJ."

"Danny, how do you keep getting back here?  I swear, I tell every Secret Service Agent I meet that you're banned."  
  
"It's my wily charm."

"If that's what gets you past them, God help us all."

"Hey now, is that any way to talk to your lovely dinner companion?"

"Dinner companion?"

She's raising her eyebrows at me skeptically.

"Yes."

I nod my head and her eyebrows get higher.

"You mean in the past tense, right?"

"No, future tense."

"Really?"  She's sounding skeptical again.  "And just when is this future event supposed to take place?"

"Tonight."

"Tonight?"

"You know, you gotta stop repeating everything I say.  I know you worship me and all, but it's getting kinda annoying."

God, I love her laugh.  She's stepped out from behind her desk now and is walking towards me.  She's pushing me up against the door now.  Okay, the door handle is jamming into my back, but I don't care.

"Danny?"

Wow, she's being totally seductive.

"Yes, CJ?"

My mouth is so dry that I could hardly say those words.  The things this woman does to me.

"Get out of my office!"

What the…?  She just reached behind my back, pushed me out of the way and yanked the door open.

"My wily charm didn't work then?"

Hey, you didn't think I was going to give up that easily, did you?

"Get out, Danny!"

Well, at least I elicited another laugh, even if she did push me out of the office while she chuckled.

*

CJ and I have been getting closer again lately, much to my delight, as I'll freely admit.  I've persuaded her to have dinner with me a couple of times, but it's always been in her office; every time I mention eating together outside of the White House she clams up and I feel like we've taken ten steps backwards.  I know she feels she's in an incredibly difficult situation in that she's White House Press Secretary and I'm a White House Reporter, but she has to know that I would never compromise her, would never take advantage.  Obviously, people would draw their own conclusions, but I'd do my best to make sure her reputation was not tarnished in any way.

I had the chance of an editorial position a few years ago and I toyed with the idea of accepting it so that CJ and I could date; I didn't take it, because I didn't feel the time was right.  Now, however, if another position became available, I would seriously consider it, but my problem now is that I don't know if CJ would still be interested in a relationship.  Every time I try to discuss *us*, she changes the subject and reminds me that we're in the office; what the hell am I supposed to do though when she refuses to meet me outside the office?  You can tell I'm totally frustrated with this whole situation, can't you?

I have the feeling that CJ wants me to back off and give her some space, but if that's the case, I don't understand why she doesn't just tell me that, rather than resorting to frequent subject changes or slamming the door in my face.  CJ has never been the sort of person who beats around the bush, she tells it like it is whether the person will like it or not, so why is she treating me differently?  Is it that she *doesn't* want me to back off, she just wants to appear that way so that Leo doesn't feel the need to intervene?  Or, is it that she *does* want me to back off, but she doesn't want to hurt my feelings because she wants me to make a move again in the future, once the ethical problems are no longer relevant?

CJ has changed over the last few years; she's gotten harder emotionally.  I've noticed it in little snippets here and there, but the evidence was easy to see when the infamous quote came out a few days before Inauguration.  Donna Moss is one of President Bartlet's most loyal employees, yet CJ immediately suspected that she was responsible for the quote.  I was shocked when she jumped to that conclusion and tried to point out that she had no proof, but she was determined that it was Donna.  Yes, she knew how pissed Donna had been about the re-assignment of Jack Reese, but did she honestly think Donna would willingly hurt the Administration, hurt Josh?  When the truth finally came out, that Jack had given the quote and Donna had taken responsibility purely to protect him, I could see the self-hate in CJ; she knew how wrong she'd been to automatically blame as good a friend as Donna before she had any proof.  Whether she has ever admitted any of this to Donna, I don't know; I just know that she and I will never discuss it again.

With the change in CJ's personality, it's more difficult to break down the barriers, which I guess explains why my wily charms are not working on her as well as I'd hoped.

Now that I've had a chance to think things through, I think I *will* back off and give CJ some space; the last thing I want to do is alienate her by pressing too hard.  Time will tell whether I've made the right decision, if it *was* what she wanted.  As long as I find a way to show that I *am* still interested, but am prepared to wait, I'm hoping I can't go wrong.

Yeah, time will tell.

**  
  
The End

I aim to get the next part out more quickly than the month it took to write this – no promises though. ;-)  I'm not gonna who say who's POV the next part will be from, because I'm not sure if I'll be able to properly 'channel' the person I have in mind; therefore, I may change my selection.  Intrigued? g


	6. Leo

TITLE:  A Day In The Life of… White House Chief of Staff

DISCLAIMER:  *So* not mine ::sigh::

RATING: PG-13

SPOILERS:  Through Season 4, but before the events of 25

FEEDBACK:  Sure, send it my way :-)

THANKS: HUGE thanks to Evelyn for all her help and suggestions for this part – who knew Leo was so hard to write? :-)

Part 6/8

**

I sometimes wonder how the Senior Staff manage to drag themselves home every night.  Yes, I know that sounds strange; you'd expect me to wonder how they drag themselves into the office every morning, given the amount of work and pressure they have, right?  Well, I never doubt that they will turn up for work, I just doubt that they'll go home at the end of the day.  The reason for that is that none of them have anything to go home for, or rather they don't have *anyone* to go home to.  They are all still young, some younger than others of course, but they don't have the opportunity to *enjoy* being young as they are too involved in work.  I know that they all love their jobs and wouldn't swap them for anything, but I do feel guilty about the fact that I roped them all into this in some way.  My biggest regret is losing my marriage because of the West Wing – Jenny always told me I was married to my career – and I don't want to see the next generation end up the same way.  I brought them here and am therefore responsible for the fact that, when they get to my age, they may be alone… and lonely.  

Although I would never admit it to any of them in public, I do care about them deeply and want the best for their futures, once our time in the White House is over.  All of them will go on to have long and illustrious careers, if they want them, I am sure of that, but a job isn't everything; there is so much more to life.  I have been fortunate enough to have had many happy years with Jenny, during which time we had a daughter, meaning that the happiness continues through her, even if Jenny and I are no longer together.

Toby is soon to experience his own joy at fatherhood and I will ensure that he makes the most of it, even if his attempts to persuade Andrea to re-marry him fail.  I think he will quickly realize that he needs to step back from the White House a little and find a suitable balance between his professional and personal lives; although I have a feeling that he already knows this, as he's been trying to give Will more of the burden lately.

Though Toby and Andrea were married, I don't think either of them gave the marriage the chance it deserved; both of them were too absorbed in their work and, since they still are, they will need to be very careful this time around, if she says yes to his proposal.  The children will obviously make a big difference, but children grow up and move out, they can't be the cement in the relationship, as I well know; there has to be something more, there has to be give and take.

Will has been thrown in at the deep end since he came to the White House, therefore, he hasn't had much of a chance to meet anyone.  He's a nice guy and I'm sure he'll find the right person some day, but I don't want him to have to wait too long.  Although he's not been in the White House as long as the rest of us, he has been in politics and has been subjected to the sacrifices that have to be made in your personal life as a result.  He still regularly practices law as well, unlike the rest of us, and how he finds the time for it all, I do not know.  With Toby easing off, Will is going to be busier than ever, but I don't want him to burn out; he needs to learn when to delegate and how to surround yourself with the best people so that delegation is an option.

I don't know Will that well yet, but he has made an impact already, particularly with Jed.  They just seemed to hit it off right away and the potential influence of Will became very evident around the Inauguration, with the foreign aid policy; it's not really difficult to distract Jed, but to have an impact like that is fairly uncommon.  I guess I shouldn't be surprised about that though, I mean, he got a dead guy elected and then managed to play to Sam's biggest weakness, his loyalty, to lure him away to California for the good of the people; not many of us could accomplish that. 

CJ's real chances of relationships always seem to involve conflicts of interest, posing many problems.  I stepped in a few years ago with some words of warning about her potential relationship with Danny and I have felt guilty about that.  I had no choice as my duty is to protect the President, but watching CJ working late every night and coming in early every morning, watching her listen to some of her colleagues discussing their latest dates, I have felt that I removed her chance of happiness.  I thought I could finally stop feeling guilty last year, when she met Simon Donovan, but that was not to be either, as he was tragically taken away from her, so soon after their conflict of interest had been resolved.

I know Danny is back on the scene now, although no-one has told me anything directly and I know that nothing has actually happened between them; I have eyes and ears though, I see and hear things.  Technically, there is still a conflict of interest as Danny is still a White House reporter and CJ is still White House Press Secretary, but I'm not going to step in this time, CJ can handle things.  If she wants to start a relationship with Danny, I trust her to come and discuss it with me, to make sure that we can pre-empt any problems.  I know she knows that I won't stand in her way this time; I asked Josh to drop a few comments here and there to let her know that it was okay.

I don't think I could stop CJ from seeing Danny if she wants to this time anyway.  A few years ago, she had too much to lose and she accepted my words of warning; however, as time has moved on, she has lost loved ones, both physically with Simon's death and emotionally with her father's illness, and she now knows that she wants and needs more.  

I used to worry about Josh most of all, through my duties as a friend of his father and also because I am ultimately responsible for him working for the White House, as I persuaded him to leave the Hoynes campaign and join the Bartlet for America campaign all those years ago, resulting in where we all are now.  I know that he has no regrets about this, but I do.  If he hadn't been so involved in the campaign, perhaps he would have been able to spend more time with his father before he died.

I know that Noah's death was unexpected, but I am still sorry that Josh was kept away from him because of the campaign I recruited him into.  Josh would not agree with that and, to be honest, I don't really regret bringing him into this, but I do feel guilty for Josh not being there for Noah and his mother.  I know I didn't keep him away; if he'd wanted to go, he would have, but it is still something that I ask myself every so often.  If I hadn't persuaded him to join the campaign and come to the White House with us, Josh would not have been shot in the line of duty at Rosslyn and would not be suffering from PTSD for the rest of his life.  I feel I should also say that, if Josh wasn't working here, he would probably be married and have children by now but, to be honest, I don't have any regrets about that; if that had happened, he would be married to the wrong woman because he wouldn't have been in the campaign office to meet the right woman, Donna.

As I said, I *used* to worry about Josh most of all but, although I still worry about him, it's not as much as I used to, as I now know that he has realized how important Donna is and he is committed to doing something about it.  He is fearful that Donna won't return his feelings, or at least not to the same extent, and he's scared that it will end with them both being hurt, but he's finally realized that he has to give it a chance or it will be the biggest regret for the rest of his life.

Josh has had inner demons since he was a young boy, ever since Joanie, and I am very, very glad that Donna has subconsciously helped him to conquer them.  I don't think either of them ever expected the feelings they have for each other to happen, they've crept up on them gradually over the years.  Donna has been chipping away at Josh's emotional barriers, getting through them without him really noticing.  I don't think she ever *tried* to break down his walls, or not until she realized how much he means to her; it's just her natural ability to get through to people, convince them to see the good in situations, no matter what.

Watching the realizations about Donna dawning on Josh over the festive period was actually entertaining, in a perverse kind of way.  The greatest Christmas gift to me last year was knowing that Josh would eventually tell Donna how he felt and that they would be happy.  I *know* that Donna will return his feelings, despite Josh's misgivings.  I've never discussed this with him, as I have no evidence to back me up, I just have the wisdom and instinct of a man who is paid to read and understand the feelings and needs of people.  It may end between them, nothing is guaranteed, but I think they are both at a stage in their lives where they realize that relationships have to be worked at, they don't just keep going without any conscious hard work.

When Josh is actually going to act, I don't know; he's just said it'll be when he feels the time is right.  I've warned him not to wait too long, but he assures me he won't and that he has a plan.  Of course, I made the highly regretful mistake of telling Margaret that he had a plan – I hasten to add that I was forced into a corner – and now she continually asks when the plan is going into effect.  I can't tell her the answer, even if I wanted to, as Josh had decided to keep his cards close to his chest, possibly because he's still pissed at me for telling Margaret in the first place; she freaks him out every time he comes by my office as she keeps looking at him closely, trying to figure out what's going on in his head.  I learned a long time ago that it's impossible to understand the workings of Josh Lyman's mind unless he wants you to know; only one person has achieved that feat and it's not his mother, it's Donna.

Even though I don't for sure what Josh is planning, or when he's planning it for, I have an inkling that something might be brewing for this weekend.  Josh told me he won't be available on Friday night and, since I hadn't actually asked him to work late, there was no need for him to tell me that; I think it was his way of telling me without telling me, so that he could get it off his chest but not actually spell it out.

Whatever Josh has planned, I hope it works out for him and for Donna.  Donna Moss is a remarkable young woman who continues to amaze me, not just because she's able to put up with Josh nearly 24/7, but because she has such a thirst for learning and a true dedication to her country, her family and her friends.  No matter what a person has done, Donna aims to see the best in them, give them a second chance; that is a remarkable gift.

Although I want everyone to be in happy relationships, my loyalty is obviously to the President.  We still have a few years before we leave the White House and we also need to ensure that the next President through the door is also a Democrat; therefore, I still need to watch over everyone carefully, dropping advice here and there without them realizing that I'm advising them.  I do this with the President as well, but he knows; he's far too wily for me to pull the wool over his eyes.

Thinking things through, I think Josh and Donna will be the role models for everyone else; they will have the toughest time trying to balance professional and personal lives since they work together so closely.  If Josh and Donna succeed, and I know they will, I can point to them when I surreptitiously advise the others.  Of course, Josh will no doubt pick up on this and tell me to take my own advice, since he always wants to couple everyone else up when he is happy, but I'm ready for that; I'm ready to move on myself.

**  
  
The End

Next up… well, I think it's time for Josh to have his say, don't you? :-)  Oh, I should also add that you won't to have to wait nearly as long for the Josh POV as you did for this one – it's half-written already.


	7. Josh

Title:  A Day In The Life of… White House Deputy Chief of Staff

Disclaimer:  *So* not mine ::sigh::

Rating: PG-13

Spoilers:  Through Season 4

Feedback:  Always welcome at kjtinlin@aol.com :-)

Thanks:  To Alicia, Sharon and Lisa.

Part 7/8

**

What's that beeping?  Oh, it's my alarm.  Wait, it's 5:06 already, how can that be true?  I know what you're thinking; you're thinking 'why does he set his alarm for 5:06 and not, say, 5:00?'  Well, the answer is simple; this way I can say 'at least I didn't have to get up at 5am'.  Also, I can hit the 'snooze' button and not actually have to get out of bed until my alarm goes off for the second time, at 5:15.  You know, that's something that's always bugged me; why do the snooze functions on alarm clock-radios sound again after *nine* minutes?  I mean, the common phrase is 'just another *five* minutes', so why nine?  There must be a reason for it, but I shouldn't get caught up in this; for all I know, snooze functions are no longer set for nine minutes – I haven't bought a new alarm clock since college!  Anyway, the damn alarm is going off again, which tells me I've been thinking about this for nine minutes so, time to get up.

Okay, Josh, put the coffee on and then jump in the shower, you can do it.  No coffee, aargh!!  What the hell am I supposed to do now?  Donna threatened me with bodily injury if I turned up at work again without having had my 'wake up' cup of coffee.  Guess I'll need to go to Starbucks on the way but, if I do that, I'm then gonna get hell from her for not buying her something but, if I do buy her something, it'll upset the power balance, since she won't bring me coffee.  What's a guy supposed to do?  Hmm, I could buy her coffee and then make her beg for it.  Alright, shower first and then decide on the way to work.

*

Ah, is there anything better than the smell of coffee early in the morning?  Well, okay, there are a *few* things better, but I'm only going to think about one right now - *drinking* the coffee!

"Morning, Josh.  What's that you've got there?"

Ha, Donna thinks that by being nonchalant she'll get what she's after - not a chance!

"It's coffee, Donna."

"You don't say!"

Hey, was there any need for the sarcasm in her tone?  Well, okay, maybe there was.

"Yes, I do say, and I also say that I'll be going into my office now."

Okay, Josh, one foot in front of the other, keep walking and don't run into anything.  Two more steps…

"Josh!"

Damn!  Do I turn around, or do I ignore her and make her follow me?  I think this might be easier on my own territory.  Okay, set the cups on the desk…yes, I said *cups*, plural.  Just wait a second and Donna will inquire as well.

"Josh."

I knew she'd follow me.  Took her longer than I thought it would though.

"Yes, Donna?"

"You, uh…you brought coffee."

"Your observation is correct."

I know I'm grinning smugly, but I can't help it - sue me!

"Two cups?"

If she thinks the hopeful tone is gonna work, she can think again.

"Yes, two cups."

Hehehe, I can see the exasperation in her eyes.

"One for you and one for…?"

"Me."

"What?"

Oh, this is gonna be fun.  I contemplated the whole way to Starbucks as to whether I should buy her a cup or not, but the possibility of her begging made my decision for me.  So, I ended up buying a cup for each of us, but I'm not gonna tell her that straight out, where would be the fun in that?  I'll just wait until she asks the question and then I'll give her my pre-prepared answer.  Okay, Josh, wipe the grin off your face before you give the game away.

"Both cups are for you?"

She's eyeing me suspiciously, as well she might I guess.

"Yes."

One-word answers really piss her off, hence my reason for this whole exercise - I'm a master politician, I knew exactly how it would play out.

"Why do you need *two* cups of coffee?"

Oh, Donna, don't pout; you're just making it more fun for me.

"To keep myself balanced."

The look on her face right now is priceless; she's stuck somewhere between confusion at my statement and wanting to hit me because she knows that, whatever I mean, it's gonna be me being my usual sweet, charming self.  Yeah, I know you don't believe that either.

"Balanced?"

Okay, how do I explain this in a way that will make her just laugh rather than hit me?  This whole idea struck me earlier, while I was in the shower.  I think it was thinking about the 'balance of power' between Donna and myself.  The 'balance' thing got stuck in my head and, well, here's the result.

"Yeah, you know, a cup of coffee in each hand to make sure my center of gravity isn't off."

Okay, she's not attempting to hit me, but she's not laughing either.  Hmm…

"Your center of gravity?"

Damn, this isn't going anything like the way I planned.  Where did my master politician skills go?  Oh wait, I haven't had my coffee yet.  Okay, take the lid off and take a sip, Josh, all will be well after that.

"Ah, coffee."

Oops, I didn't mean to say that out loud - she's glaring at me now.

"Josh!"

She's tapping her foot impatiently and her eyes are really wide; in fact, the phrase 'bugging out' would fit perfectly.

"Okay, okay, I bought the other cup for you."  She takes the cup I hold out, but she's eyeing it warily.  "I didn't poison it or anything, Donna."

"Are you sure?"

"Donna!"

Hey, she just switched cups on me!  I waved my arms around in exasperation for a moment and she took the opportunity to switch cups, so that she is now holding the one I took a sip from earlier.

"Donna!"

"What?  If the other one doesn't have anything wrong with it, what's the problem?"

Oh, she's trying the sweet, innocent voice now.  It's not going to work.

"The other one is *your* favorite, not mine.  See, I go to all the bother of buying your favorite flavor of *girly* coffee, but I end up having to drink it; last time I ever do that.  Don't you trust me or something?"

Okay, that was meant to be a joking statement but, for some reason, my voice sounded strange when I asked if she trusts me.

"Of course I trust you, Josh."

Her voice was really low when she said that, and it had a…a *quality* to it that I haven't heard before.

"I know you do."

I don't think I've ever let my voice be that soft, I hope she realizes that; I wouldn't be like this with anyone but her.  Maybe this is…maybe this is the *moment* I discussed with Leo.  Should I take the chance?  There might never be a better one, I'm just gonna go for it.

"Donna?"

"Yeah?"

Okay, she's giving me a piercing gaze and it's…disconcerting isn't the right word, but it is having a strange effect on me.

"I…I just --"

"Josh, you need to read this, now."

What the hell?  Oh, it's CJ.  She just walked, no *barged* into my office and thrust a paper under my nose.

"CJ, can't this wait, I'm kinda --"

"No, it can't wait; that's why I said you needed to read it *now*!"

Uh oh, she seems pissed.  Wait, have I done something?  I don't think I have, but you never know.  Okay, Josh, take the paper and read what she's pointing at.  Oh, there's a really scathing op-ed piece about the Administration - I'm gonna have to kick some Republican butt for this.

"I'll leave you to it."

Huh?  Oh damn, Donna just left the office, taking her coffee, or rather *my* coffee with her.  I hope that wasn't *the* moment that just passed.

*

Phew, I *finally* got CJ out of my office after we came up with a suitable response to the op-ed piece, but not before we had involved Toby and Will.  Hmm, I'd expected Donna to come into my office as soon as the others left, but she hasn't appeared yet.

"Donna?"

She's not replying.

"Donna?"

I called a little louder that time, but still no reply.

"DONNA?"

Okay, I know I bellowed that time, but I know it'll get her attention.  Hmm, she still hasn't answered; even when she's on the phone she always answers, just to tell me to shut up 'cos she's on the phone.  Damn, I'm gonna have to drop my feet from my desk and actually leave my office to see where she is…although, maybe if I sit here and yell long enough, she'll either get back from wherever she is, or someone will get fed up and come tell me where she's gone.  That would be a good plan, except I know Donna would call me on it later.  Okay, Josh, get up and walk.

*

Well, apparently Donna went to see Bonnie and Ginger while Toby and Will were in my office.  One of the interns said she mentioned something about coffee and that Bonnie and Ginger would never believe her.  You know, if I didn't know better, I'd think she was mocking me, but I *do* know better, Donna wouldn't mock me - no, I didn't believe myself then either.

*

"You were looking for me?"

Donna's looking at me intently, actually she's staring; have I spilt something on my tie again?  Nope, nothing there, but now she's looking at me like I've gone crazy.  Nice one, Josh!

"Josh, what did you need?"

Oh, I'm supposed to answer her, aren't I?  What did I want again?  Okay, well, obviously I can't tell her that I just wanted to see her, that I'm used to her appearing in my office after a meeting so I can talk about everything with her so, what can I tell her?

"It's okay, I sorted it myself."  
  
"You did?"

Why does she sound surprised?  Wait, her tone held more disbelief than surprise.

"Yes, I am capable of doing things for myself, you know."

She's smirking at me now.

"Except when it involves computers."

"Donna."

"Alright, I won't start.  So, you don't need me?"

You know, I'm *so* tempted to answer that in a way she totally isn't expecting, but now isn't the time or place.  Should I just go for the playful banter instead?  Nah, even that's been getting onto dangerous territory lately and I don't trust myself right now; it's still early and I've only had a half-cup of coffee.  What, you didn't seriously think I'd drink all of that *girly* flavor, did you?

"No, I'm okay for the moment."

I'm smiling at her and she's smiling back.  Uh oh, we've locked eyes.  Danger, Will Robinson!

"I'll call if I need anything."

Yeah, I know it's lame, but I couldn't think of anything else with my coffee-starved brain.  Seriously, I have a plan for…actually, I don't want to think about it right now.  I'm not exactly known for my patience, but I swore to myself I'd take my time with this, let Donna figure things out.  If I don't stop thinking about it though, or I keep getting into situations like this with her, I'm just gonna blurt it out and probably scare her off.

I'm giving her my best 'nice' smile now, but I've dropped my gaze to my desk.  She's taken the hint and left, but she was walking kinda heavily; she half-stomped out of my office.  Oh, Donna, I hope you forgive me when 'all is revealed'.

I'm surprised she doesn't already know about my plan; Leo had to go and open his mouth to tell Margaret.  I swear, every time I see her now, she spooks me; she keeps giving me piercing looks, like she's trying to get me to crack and tell her my plan and it's timeframe.  Does she really think I'd shoot my mouth off that easily?  Okay, maybe that was the wrong question to ask; I'll rephrase.  Does she really think I'd shoot my mouth off about something relating to *Donna* so easily?

I dropped a hint to Leo yesterday about when my plan is going into action; I told him I couldn't work Friday night (tomorrow) and I think he got the message.  Amazingly, he hasn't told Margaret that part yet; I'd know if he had because she'd definitely have said something when I went to Senior Staff this morning.  Anyway, I'm pretty sure he won't tell her because he learned his lesson last time; yes, I had a few *words* with him, but mainly he learned because Margaret is now bugging him even more, trying to find out if he has any further information.

I had planned on waiting a while longer, but I can't stand having to watch what I say to Donna in case I give myself away; I don't like not being able to banter properly, it's not *us*.  So, today is the day I'm going to kickstart things.  I hope this works.

*

"Donna, do you have plans for tomorrow night?"

She's looking at me warily; she probably thinks I'm going to ask her to work late.

"No, Josh, I don't, but I'm not going to work late."

Yep, that's exactly what she thought.

"It's okay, I don't want you to work late."  
  
"You don't?"

"No."

"So, why did you ask what I'm doing tomorrow night then?"

"I didn't."  She looks totally confused; I love messing with her.  "I asked if you had plans, not what the plans were."

She just rolled her eyes at me!

"Is that you trying to practice being a lawyer again, Josh?  Really, you need to do better than that if you're ever going to make it in the 'real World'."

Hey, did she just insult me?  She did, didn't she?

"Donna, I *am* a lawyer."

"Keep telling yourself that, Josh and I'm sure one day someone will believe you, not me, but someone."

Hey!

"Hey!"

"Anyway, why did you ask if I had plans, if you're not going to ask me to work late?"

Oh right, I'd better get back to that.  Wait, she's just trying to distract me from the fact that she insulted my lawyerly skills again.  What, lawyerly *is* a word, or at least it should be!

"Josh."

She's sounding impatient now and I don't want her annoyed with me when I ask her.

"Right, yeah, uh…"

Damn, I had all this planned out in my head, but I can't remember a word.  Come on, Josh, pull yourself together, it's not that difficult.

"Josh."

"Yeah, sorry, uh…Donna, would you have dinner with me tomorrow evening?"

"Is that your way of getting me to work late?  I'll agree to have dinner with you and then you tell me we'll be eating take-out while we work?"

Does she really think so little of me?  Okay, I admit, on past evidence she does have a point, but still…

"No, I promise, we won't be working.  In fact, we won't even be in the White House."

There, let her stew on that for a while.  Hmm, it's maybe not such a good idea if I sound as smug as I did just then.

"So, we're going to be in your apartment, where you'll just happen to have some work waiting for us?"

What the…?

"Donna, we won't be working; what do I have to do to convince you of that?"

She still looks dubious.

"Look, we won't be in my apartment.  I thought we could go out, you know, to a restaurant."

I can see light dawning in her eyes.

"Oh, so it's another Senior Staff/Senior Assistants dinner, is it?"

Huh?  Oh, she thinks…

"No, well, yeah, I guess, but it'll just be us, you and me."

"So, it's a DCoS/Senior Assistant to the DCoS dinner?  Another 'thank you' dinner?"

Is it just me, or did she sound disappointed when she said that?

"No, it'll be a Josh and Donna dinner."

From the look she's giving me, I don't think I'm making myself clear.  Damn, this all sounded good in my head.

"Look, I…I just thought it'd be…nice if we went out to dinner, just the two of us.  It'll give us a chance to spend some time together."  
  
"Josh, we spend about 18 hours a day together."

Is she not getting my meaning, or is this her way of telling me to back off?  Damn, why don't I understand women?

"Donna, I meant *away* from the office.  Look, I'll understand if you don't want to, I --"

"I'd love to."

"You would?"

"Sure."

She's smiling at me.  That's a good sign, right?

"Great, it's a date.  Listen, why don't I pick you up from your apartment, say around 8?  You can leave here whenever you need to so you can get ready."

She's looking dubious again.

"Barring any emergencies of course."

"Of course."  
  
Yeah, that's what she was waiting for.  Typical, although, I guess I can't blame her.

She gave me a beatific smile as she left my office.  I *so* need to make sure tomorrow night goes the way I want to, the way I want *her* to want it to.  Please let tomorrow be a good day, so I can get out of here to keep my date.

**

The End

Still to come, in Part 8, what has Donna been thinking about lately?  Yes, the end of this series is approaching. ::sob sob::  g  Now I just need to, you know, *finish* writing it.


	8. Donna

Title:  A Day In The Life of… Senior Assistant to White House Deputy Chief of Staff

Disclaimer:  *So* not mine ::sigh::

Rating: PG-13

Spoilers:  Through Season 4

Feedback:  Always welcome at kjtinlin@aol.com :-)

Thanks:  To Jillian, Lisa and Sharon.

Notes:  This is the final part of this series… finally. ;-)  Thanks to all who've sent feedback, it's much appreciated.

Part 8/8

**

I am *so* tired right now.  I didn't sleep much last night; I knew I wouldn't, thanks to Josh.  Oh wait, that sounds bad - it wasn't like that.  You see, last night, Josh asked me to have dinner with him, to go out with him tonight.  That in itself is a good thing, I always like spending time with Josh, just the two of us, but the problem is that I don't know what tonight is about.  Josh asked me in his own cryptic way; first he kinda said that it was going to be a boss/assistant thing, then he said it was a Josh/Donna thing, then he said, "Great, it's a date."  He also said that he'd pick me up tonight, from my apartment, and that I can leave work when I want to go and get ready.  That's what caused my sleepless night - I don't know if tonight is about two co-workers spending time together, or if it's a date between two people who care about each other.

I know Josh cares about me, in his own way, but I don't know what way that is.  Does he think about me as much as I think about him?  Probably not.  Does he see me when he thinks about where he might be in ten years?  Possibly.  But, does he think I'll still be just his assistant, or is there more?  I ask myself these questions almost every day, but I have never yet come up with a definite answer.

Last night, I lay in bed and replayed Josh's words over and over again, "Great, it's a date."  I analyzed his tone, the look on his face, the inflections in his voice, but I still couldn't make up my mind whether he was just using a casual line, an offhand comment, or whether he actually meant that he was asking me out on a date.  The fact that he's letting me leave early to get ready points in the direction of a date but, with Josh, you just never know for sure.

You know what's really annoying about all this?  Normally, I wouldn't let it bother me; I'd just go along tonight and see how it played out, keeping my mask firmly in place.  However, recently a few people have said things to me that have got me thinking…thinking that maybe there's something there, between Josh and I.  I know there's something on my part, but I've never known how Josh felt and I've always been too afraid to question it seriously, too afraid that I might not like the answer.  Anyway, CJ said something to me when we went out last week, on our 'Girls Night Out'.  We went for dinner and then to a bar.  All the Senior Assistants were there; Carol, Margaret, Bonnie, Ginger and myself and we were all having fun and relaxing; we took the opportunity to fill CJ in on some of the latest escapades of our bosses and she told us some stories that we didn't know.  About an hour into our gossip session, CJ and I headed to the bar for another round of drinks.  It was there that she started asking me questions about Josh in a kind of strange manner, as if she was trying to get me to tell her something without her asking me directly.  I didn't want to come right out and just ask her what she wanted to know, but I couldn't think of another way to find out.  However, the alcohol soon took over and I completely forgot about it; I've never really found an appropriate moment since then.

I've set myself a mission for today – find out whether tonight is a date, or if Josh is trying to repay me for something, or what.  I think I'm gonna have to enlist help, so my first stop when I get to the office is to go and see CJ.  I'll ask her what she was trying to find out last week and see if that gives me any clues.  I don't know if Josh has told anyone about tonight, so I don't want to mention it just in case; if it *is* a date, he might want to keep it quiet.

*

"CJ, have you got a minute?"

She's looking up at me from her desk.

"Oh, hey, Donna.  Sure, have a seat."

I've sat down on the couch in her office, indicating to her that it's a personal matter; if it was work, I'd have sat in her visitor's chair.  Yeah, she understands, she's sat down in the armchair.

"What's up?"

"Nothing really, I… uh, I was just thinking back to our 'girls night out' last week."

She's smiling.

"Yeah?  It was a good night."

"Yeah, it was, but I remembered something about it that… well, why did you start asking me about Josh?"

"Josh?"

She's good; her face and tone were nonchalant, but there was a flicker of worry for a moment.

"Yeah, you started asking me if I was glad that Amy and Josh were over and if I thought Josh was going to stay out of the dating game for a while."

"I did?"

"Yeah, you did."

She's nodding, as if remembering.

"Yeah, I did."

"Why were you asking?"

"I don't know, Donna, we were at the bar, I was making conversation."

"That's all it was?"

I know I sound skeptical.

"Yeah.  Well, I mean, I was curious about your thoughts on Josh and Amy.  You wouldn't talk about them while they were dating and we've never really had a chance to catch up properly since then, without Josh or one of the guys being around."

"Oh."

"So?"

"So, what?"

"What *are* your thoughts on Josh and Amy?"

Uh oh, danger, Will Robinson!  Don't go there, CJ, I don't want to get into this, I might reveal too much.

"I, uh… I don't really have any thoughts on them, CJ.  Their relationship is over and I'm glad Josh doesn't seem hurt or upset about it."  

Why is she looking at me intently?  What did I just say?  Oh, right.  Say something, Donna, quickly!

"I mean, I don't like to see Josh get hurt; he's a friend and a nice guy, he has enough pain already without adding to it."

Do you think she bought that?  No, I don't either, but it'll have to do.  Now to get out of here, quickly.

"Uh, speaking of Josh, he's probably wondering where I am, I haven't let him know I'm here yet.  I'd better go, talk to you later, CJ."

Just get up from the couch and don't look at her, Donna.  Damn, I can still see the look on her face; she has a small smile and looks as though she's figured something out.  Okay, I need to stay away from CJ now, don't let myself be alone with her.

*

You know, if I didn't know better, I'd think that Josh was avoiding me.  I mean, I know he's busier than ever, since he's been tasked with the selection process for the new VP, but still, you'd think he'd at least find time to ask how I'm doing or, you know, tell me where we're going tonight.  Instead, he's been rushing into his office, grabbing the files I leave on his desk for him and then rushing off to his next meeting.  How the hell am I supposed to find out if tonight's a date or not?

"Donna, are you listening?"

"Huh?"

Oh, damn, I didn't know he was there, I was too busy thinking.

"I asked you what you're still doing here."

"What?"

Oh, way to verbalize, Donna.

"It's after 5pm, don't you want to leave so you can get ready for tonight?  I'd have thought you'd jump at the chance to get out of here early."

Wow, it's 5pm already?

"I, uh… I didn't realize it was so late."

What?  It's true.

"Well, it is, so why don't you get going; I'll pick you up at 8."

"You don't need me to stick around?  You still have a ton of stuff to do."

And I want to make sure you're going to get out of here on time.

"Nah, I'll be okay.  I told Leo I couldn't work late tonight, so he's letting me pass some stuff on to Toby and Will."

What?!

"Leo knows about tonight?"

"Yeah, why wouldn't he?"

Well, because, if it's a date, I thought you might have wanted to keep it quiet.  Dammit, now I'm more confused than ever.  Wait, maybe he *would* tell Leo, I mean, would he want to check with Leo that it was okay to date me?  No, he wouldn't do that, he wouldn't need to.  Aarrgh!

"Donna?"

"Oh, right, yeah, I, uh… I just wondered, that's all."

Dammit, voice, quit stammering.

"You gonna go?"

"Yeah, I'm going.  Thank, Josh, I'll see you at 8."

"Okay, be ready because I *will* be on time."

I didn't even get a chance to give him a disbelieving look there because he turned and walked away towards the Communications bullpen.  Okay, Donna, pull yourself together, go home and get ready for dinner with Josh.  Damn, I don't even know where we're going, so I don't know what to wear.

*

Well, it's five minutes to eight and I've just put the finishing touches to my hair; I've curled it lightly, similar to the way I wore it for the Inauguration.  It took me about an hour to decide what to wear, trying to find something that was suitable for most restaurants; for all I know, Josh is going to wear the suit he wore today, or he might go home and just change into jeans.  I decided on a dress suit; the dress has thin straps and can be casual or formal, but there is a jacket with it as well.  I'll wait until Josh gets here before I put jewelry on; if he's in a suit, I can put more formal jewelry on than if he's in casual pants and a shirt.

Okay, that's the door buzzer; Josh is right on time.  Well, it's now or never; let's just hope I'm dressed appropriately.

*

"Hey."

"Hi, Josh, come on in."

He's stepped into my apartment and closed the door.  He's wearing a coat, so I can't tell for sure what he's wearing, although, it looks like the pants from a suit.  Okay, I don't want to sound as though I'm fishing for compliments, because I'm really not, but I do need to find out if I'm wearing the right kind of thing.

"I, uh… I didn't know where we're going for dinner, so I hope I'm dressed okay."

He's looking me up and down; any other time, I'd have hit him for that.

"You look wonderful, Donna."

"I'll do then?"

"Yeah, you'll do."

He's grinning, typical!

"Thanks, I just have to grab my jewelry, gimme a sec."

"I might have known you wouldn't be ready on time."

Oh, there's the pot calling the kettle black.

"Look who's talking, Josh."

I'm calling to him from my bedroom, but I know he can hear me.

"Point taken."

He admitted that?  Wow, this is a totally different situation for us, isn't it?  Okay, I've put on my semi-formal jewelry, just to be on the safe side so, time to go.

*

The restaurant he's chosen is amazing, one I've always wanted to try, but never been to.  It's 'Morrison-Clark Restaurant' in the Downtown area.  It's part of the Morrison-Clark Inn, which is a totally beautiful hotel.  I've heard good stories about it but never been; when I eat out with friends, we go somewhere cheaper – this place is *not* cheap – and I've never been brought here on a date, even though it's a popular 'date' restaurant.  That, of course, has confused me again, because it *is* a typical date restaurant, but is that why Josh chose it?

"Nice choice of restaurant, Josh."

"Thanks, I hoped you'd like it; I've heard good reports about it."

"Yeah, me too."

We're sitting by one of the fireplaces; I wonder if Josh requested this when he made the reservation?  Well, I can't ask him so, unless he tells me, I'll never know for sure.  It's an incredibly romantic restaurant but, since Josh has never been before, did he know that?

*

We've just been served our main courses and Josh is looking at me like…okay, the last time he looked at me like this was the night of the Inauguration, when he told me I looked amazing.  That was one of the best nights of my life.  I thought it was going to be one of the worst, that I'd be sitting home all night while my friends were out celebrating but, more than that, I thought I'd be sitting home while Josh was out feeling disappointed, and probably betrayed by me.  In the end though, it turned out to be one of the best nights, if not *the* best.  It's funny how my highs and lows always seem to revolve around Josh.  The worst night of my life was when he was shot, when I had to wait all those long hours to find out if he would live and then, although it wasn't anything much, the best night of my life was the Inauguration, when Josh came to 'rescue me' and whisk me away to a Ball.  It was like something out of a fairytale; Josh and his band of Merry Men riding in on their, well, their taxi, to save me from the confines of my apartment.  Okay, I know Robin Hood isn't a fairytale, but you get my meaning, right?

We had such fun that night, even though we ended up working; there was a euphoric feeling throughout us all and Josh was teasing me for most of the night, insisting I refer to him as 'Wild Thing'.  Hey, I wonder if he remembers that?

"Hey, can you pass the pepper, Wild Thing?"

Yup, from the look on his face, I'd say he remembers why he wanted to be called that, his supposed skill with snowballs; it's brought out his full-dimpled smile.

"Did you just call me Wild Thing?"

"Yeah."

"Why?"

He looks curious.

"Because."

Because I'm trying to figure out what this night is about, Josh and I want you to give me some sort of sign, anything to make it clear.

"Because what?"

"Just because."

Yeah, like I'm gonna tell him.

"Okay."

He looks confused, but he's still smiling.

"Because you asked me to."

There, that'll confuse him even more.

"What?"

Yup, confusion all over his face.

"You asked me to call you Wild Thing, don't you remember?"

He's smirking at me now.  Wow, what that man can do with a smirk.

"Well, since you're in the mood for granting my requests, does that mean you'll bring me coffee."

I can't help myself, I have… to… laugh.  Josh is laughing right along with me and everyone in the restaurant is now staring at us, but I don't care; the ice has been broken and we're back to being *us*.

*

Josh is just sitting there eating his food and smiling, but not giving me any indication as to what's going on in his head; dammit, why don't I understand men?

"Did CJ tell you that Danny sent her a bunch of flowers to apologize for chasing her so much lately?"

What?  Oh, he's speaking to me; I got caught up trying to figure out what he's thinking about.

"Uh, yeah, she told me.  It wasn't really a *bunch* of flowers though, it was more of a *bouquet*; a big, beautiful bouquet."

"As nice as the ones I buy for you?"

What?  Where did *that* come from?  When was the last time he actually bought me flowers?

"Josh, when was the last time you bought me flowers?"

There, *he* can provide the answer.

"April."

How the hell did he answer so quickly?  Oh…

"Oh, that's right," I mock-grimace, "you got confused again about the date I started working for you.  Really, Josh, you need to start using a calendar."  I had managed to erase that from my memory, why did he have to mention it again?

"Look, I'm a man of occasion, so you get flowers in April."

"But I though we sorted this out; I started working for you in the February, so *that's* the occasion."

"Yeah, but until you… you told me the reason why you didn't want to be reminded of the period where you didn't work for me – the *other* reason, you know, different to just the fact that you couldn't bear to be parted from me…"  Oh, God, he's actually smirking about this!  "Anyway, until you told me that, I always celebrated it in April."

"But, you actually started giving me flowers in February after that," I point out.  They're always really nice flowers too; must cost him a fortune.  "Why do you still send some in April?"  I ask him that every year when I get them, but he never gives me an answer.

"I don't like change."

He doesn't like change?  What does that mean?  His tone was totally unreadable there.  Is he just talking about changing the date of our 'anniversary', or is he talking about change in general, or is he talking about *us*; maybe he senses that I want more between us and he's trying to let me know that he doesn't want to change things?

How do I respond to his comment?  What do I say?

"I can tell that by the way you insist on wearing the same clothes for 36 hours straight."

There, bring the banter back and steer us into safer waters, Donna.

"I haven't done that for a while, you know," he defends.  He's right, he hasn't.  "I've actually been going home at night to get some sleep, or at least to try to get some sleep."

Trying to sleep?  He's having problems sleeping again?  I didn't know that.  I should ask him about that, I want to help.

"*Trying* to sleep?"

He has this weird kind of deer-in-the-headlights look going on, like he said something he really didn't mean to say.  Why is he so nervous about not being able to sleep?

"I, uh… I just find it difficult to sleep sometimes; you know, too much going on in my mind."

"Like what?  I know things have been hectic lately with Hoynes and everything, but you wouldn't go home if you didn't think you could switch off from work, I know you wouldn't; you would just keep working until you got things sorted out or you collapsed from exhaustion."

The look on his face just confirmed that my fairly bold statement is true.  See, I *do* know him well.

"So, uh… do you think Danny will actually back off from CJ now, or is this just to lull her into a false sense of security?"

Oh, he's trying the old 'change the subject' tactics; not going to work, Joshua.

"Josh, why can't you sleep?"

"I… I just have stuff to think about, it's nothing."

For some reason, that doesn't assure me.

"Is it…?"

How do I ask this?  Last time I worried his PTSD would flare up – when a sniper hit the Press Room – he told me I was worrying far too much.

"No, it's not."

I guess he figured out what was going on in my mind there; it was probably written all over my face.

"You're sure?"

I know he doesn't like me asking him these kind of things, but I want, no, I *need* to know he's okay.  

"Yes, I'm sure.  Now, are you going to answer my question about Danny?"

I really don't want to change the subject yet, but he's obviously not comfortable talking about this, so I shouldn't press him.

"You know Danny better than I do, Josh."

*

We've been eating dinner for about an hour now, talking about our colleagues; it's been nice.  It's strange though, we haven't actually been discussing them in a work sense.  Instead, we've been discussing their personal lives; CJ and Danny, Toby and Andrea and the impending birth of the twins, we've even talked about the Bartlets; we've never really *not* talked about work before, not for this long.  Like I said, it's nice.

"Would you like some dessert?"

Oh, it's the waiter.  I didn't even notice him; I was too busy watching the laughter lines on Josh's face dancing around as he laughed at my comment about Toby probably teaching the twins to hold a pen as soon as they're born.

"Donna, would you like some dessert?"

Oops, I still haven't answered the waiter, have I?

"I don't think I could manage it; I'm pretty full."

"But you have to, Donna; the cheesecake here is supposed to be amazing."

"It would be a waste, Josh, I wouldn't finish it."

"Okay."

It *would* be a waste; the food here is fantastic and I've eaten way too much already, there's no way I could fit in dessert as well.

"Can we have the cheesecake with two forks please?"

What?

"We can share."

His voice was very soft as he said that and he was looking right into my eyes, as if he was reading my thoughts.  Water, I need water to calm me down and bring me back to Earth from Planet Josh!

I've grabbed my water glass and I'm gulping it down.  Okay, that wasn't the right thing to do; I drank it so fast I now feel like I'm choking and Josh has a panicked look on his face.

"Donna, are you okay?"

Yup, he's panicked alright.  I'm trying to nod but, you know, it's not easy to do when you're trying to find a way to breathe.  They say to drink water to help you *stop* choking, not to *cause* you to choke; it could only happen to me.

"Donna?"

He's now got up from his seat and is kneeling down beside me.  This is totally embarrassing; everyone is looking at us.

"I'm alright."

Okay, I sounded croaky there.

"You sure?"

Well, I *was* alright until you started rubbing your hand up and down my back in a soothing manner, Josh!

"I'm fine, just drank the water too fast and it went down the wrong way."

Thankfully, my voice is now back to normal.  Josh, remove your hand from my back and go back to your seat before I have to drink a full pitcher of water!

"Do you still feel up to eating some cheesecake?"

He's sitting opposite me again, but his eyes are boring into me; I don't think he believes that I'm okay.  Oh, Josh, your worry complex about people you care about is sweet, but I don't want you to worry about me; that'll just make *me* worry about *you*.

"I might manage a bite or two."

"Good," he smiles, "because here it comes."

Sure enough, the waiter just set the cheesecake down in the middle of the table, after moving the candle to one side.  Oh, I didn't mention there was a lit candle on our table, did I?  Well, there is and it's just increasing my dreams about what this evening is about… meaning I'll be even more disappointed later.

We've picked up our forks, but neither of us seems to want to make the first move towards the cheesecake.

"This is stupid."

Oops, did I say that out loud?

"You're right, let's dig in."

Phew, glad he didn't probe me about what I was finding stupid.  We both stabbed our forks into the cheesecake, on opposite sides, and are now putting the forks into our mouths.  I'm watching the food practically glide into Josh's mouth and… you know what, I need to avert my eyes before I choke again.  Okay, that was probably a mistake because I looked at Josh's eyes instead of his mouth, only to find that his eyes are focused on my lips.  Should I take my time with the cheesecake, eat it seductively?  No, I don't want to seduce Josh, well, I *do*, but I'm not going to; I still don't know what tonight is about.  Right, I'm just going to eat a little bit more of the cheesecake, normally, and stay silent, unless Josh asks me something.

*

Well, we've finished dinner and left the restaurant and are now waiting for the valet to bring Josh's car around.  It's about 10pm and it's a clear night, meaning the stars are visible in the sky.  Right now, I'm looking up at them, watching them twinkle; with Josh standing beside me, this is the perfect way to spend an evening.

"Donna, the car is here."

Huh?  Oh, I must have drifted off into my own little world there.  Josh is holding the car door open for me.

"Thanks, Josh."

He just closed the door and got in his own side.

"Do you wanna go for a drive?"

"What?" 

"It's Friday night, we don't have to be at work as early tomorrow; it's a beautiful night, so I thought you might want to drive around for a bit."

"That sounds good, but…"

"But what?

"Well, it *is* a beautiful night, so I think I'd rather go for a walk."

"That sounds good too; I'll drive us somewhere, okay?"

"Okay."

*

Josh ended up parking the car on Constitution Avenue and we're now walking, well strolling along the Mall.  There are a few people around but, in general, it's pretty quiet.  It's definitely a night for dates though; there's a street vendor selling roses, something that you don't often see around here.

"Hey, wait here for a sec, I'll be back."

"What, Josh?"

He just left me standing here and jogged off.  Oh, he's approaching the street vendor.  What is he doing?  I mean, you only buy roses for dates, right?  Does that mean that it *is* a date?  Well, he's walking towards me now so, hopefully, I'm about to find out.

"A beautiful rose for a beautiful lady."

"You know that line was totally corny, right?"

He's shrugging his shoulders.

"I know, but I'm not good with this stuff."  
  
"What stuff?"

"Dating."

Dating?

"Did you say *dating*?"

He did say dating, right?

"Yeah."

He looks confused with my question.  If he said dating, that means this is a date!  Wait, Donna, calm down, don't get too presumptuous.  Wow, how did I use a big word like that when I'm this excited?  Stop it, calm down!  Heart, stop pounding; I mean it, Josh will hear you!

"You're no good with dating stuff?"

"Yeah, you know me, I'm pretty hopeless."

"You're hopeless with most things Josh."  What?  He is!  "But, why are you talking about dating in particular?"

"Well, isn't it usual to talk about dating when you're on a date?"

I KNEW IT!!!!!!!!  Oh, he's looking at me for an answer.  He looks nervous, like he thinks he's said something wrong.  Okay, smile sweetly at him, but don't overdo it, don't look like an idiot.

"Yeah, I guess that's usual."

Nice, Donna, you managed to act pretty nonchalant there.

"Donna, you did realize this was a date, right?"

There was a definite smirk in his voice and, yup, there's a matching smirk on his face.  Dammit, I'm busted; he knows I wasn't sure if this was a date or not.  I need to wipe the smirk from his face or I'll never live this down; he'll go on and on about how I can't read him as well as I thought.

"If I'd known it was a date, do you think I'd have said yes?"

Mission completed, the smirk is gone.  But, wait, it's been replaced with a totally crestfallen look.  Aargh, way to blow it, Donna!

"I'm sorry, I should have been clearer.  We can forget I said anything."

"No!"  Oops, didn't mean to sound so desperate there.  Actually, I did.  "Josh, I was just messing with you; I'm sorry, I didn't mean to hurt you."

"Just messing with me how?  You knew it was a date all along?"

Hmm, how should I answer this?  Choices, choices.  Well, they say honesty is the best policy.

"No, I didn't know it was a date; I wasn't sure."

"I thought you were *tuned* to me, Donna?"

He's smirking again.

"See, that's why I had to mess with you, Josh, to stop you holding it over me that I don't know you as well as I thought I did."

"You know me, Donna, better than anyone."

The smirk is gone and his face is totally serious.

"Wait, *would* you have come tonight if you'd known it was a date?"

Oh, Josh, your insecurities are incredible given who you are.

"Yes, Josh, I would have."

Hey, who made my voice sound so husky?

"Good."

Well, someone stole his breath too because his voice was as husky as mine there.  Oh, my God, the look he's giving me is making my knees go weak; his eyes are totally full of emotion, they've gone very dark.

We've been walking all this time and are now standing in the Ellipse, with the White House in the distance behind us, and our eyes are locked together.  There's a slight chill in the air – it is early May after all – but I don't feel cold; instead, heat is searing through me and I'm pretty sure it's transmitted from Josh's eyes.  There are only about two steps between us, correction, make that one step because Josh has just taken a step forwards.  He's looking at me intently, searching my eyes, as though he's waiting for something.  Oh, right, he wants an indication of what I want.  Well, I think I'll step towards him, close the gap; that's a pretty good indication, right?

Yeah, that's what he was waiting for because his hands are now on either side of my face, caressing my cheeks.  God, this feels so good… and so *right*.  Wow, the look in his eyes is totally intense, he's making me feel like the most special person in the World.  All thought is now being pushed from my head because his lips are on mine…

I need to stop kissing him so I can catch my breath, but I don't want to remove my lips from his.  Well, he's moved back now anyway.

"I'm sorry."

What?  What's he sorry for?  Does he think I didn't want that?  Did he not mean to kiss me? Did *he* not want it?

"You're… you're sorry?"

Okay, I really need to get my breathing under control before I attempt to speak again.

"I can't hold my breath for as long as I used to, it's an unfortunate side effect from, you know, being shot."

Oh, *that's* what he's sorry for.

"It's okay, Josh."  I'm giving him my best smile, I hope he realizes that.  "At least you're not sorry for kissing me."

Wait, did I say that out loud?  Yeah, from the look on his face, I must have.

"I'll never be sorry for that, Donna."

Okay, I didn't think my knees could get any weaker without me collapsing, but they just did.  His voice is so full of emotion and he hasn't taken his eyes off me.

"You're not sorry, are you?"

Now his voice holds traces of worry.

"Does this answer your question?"

I'm guessing that, by the way he's responding to my kiss, he knows the answer.

"You know I mentioned earlier that I was having trouble sleeping?"

"Yeah."

"Well, you're the reason."

What?

"*I'm* the reason?"

"Yeah, you see, I've been wanting to do this for a while."

"This?"

"Yeah, you know, asking you out."

"Oh."

Wait, he's been wanting to do it for a *while*?

"How long is a while?"

"Pretty much since Thanksgiving, though it took me a while to figure it out completely; definitely since Christmas though."

"What took you so long?  It's now May."

I really want to know the answer to that.

"I wanted to get it right, so I took my time and planned."

"*You*?  You don't know how to plan."

What?  He doesn't.

"A man can change, Donna."

"So, you planned?"

"Yeah, and I'm glad I did, because tonight has been perfect, at least for me."

He's looking a little dubious, I should reassure him.

"It's been perfect for me as well, Josh."

"Yeah?"

"Yeah.  Does this prove it?"

I can feel his smile against my lips; I guess he's got his proof.

*

"I should get you home."

Okay, when he broke our kiss this time, those are not the words I expected to hear.

"Home?"

"Yeah, it's late and, unfortunately, we have to work tomorrow, even though it's Saturday."

He's talking as though he's just gonna take me home and then leave; that can't be what he means, can it?

"But, I…"  How do I phrase this?  "What happens now, Josh?"

His hands are back on my face and he's holding my gaze.

"Well, I took my time to get us to this point, to ask you out when the time was right, to not rush things; I think we should just go with the flow and see where it takes us.  We have time, Donna, I want this to be right, to last."

"You don't want to rush?"

Is that a compliment, or not?

"Donna, if I'm right, this is going to be the last time that either of us *date*, so I think we should take our time and savor each step."

Did he just hint that…?  He did, didn't he?

"That sounds like a plan."

"Good, because you know how I like to plan things."

He's giving me a full-dimpled grin; how am I going to resist inviting him in when we get to my apartment?

"And you know how I like to execute your plans."

"Yeah, I know; we make a good team, Donna."

"Take me home, Josh."

"Certainly, Donna, your chariot awaits… parked on the street, where we left it."

Okay, the bad jokes are back; this is going to work.

**

The End

Well, that's it folks… I hope this was worth the wait. :-)


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